Ignis & Fulgoris
by Gavedin
Summary: The keyblade was a fickle weapon. If its master believed someone was ready, it was then up to the keyblade to give the final pass. And now in a time where there were barely any of the wielders left in the vast expanse of worlds, a new decision is made.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Nope for Naruto or Kingdom Hearts. Just nope. I don't think I would have been able to make KH as memorable, and Naruto would have probably ended already.

Chapter 1:

Darkness.

Without it, light would run rampant and ultimately destroy itself.

Light.

Without it, darkness could not exist.

These two forces were in constant conflict, never truly dying out in their never ending struggle. Throughout the ages, many battles were fought between the two factions and their respective worlds. The warriors of light viewed darkness as true evil, invading the heart and corrupting it until the wicked energy completely overtook them in their lust for power. The soldiers of darkness viewed light as being soft, resting in the brightness and believing all was well, never truly suffering while acting like heroes though staying weak and pitiful.

It was through these battles of the morality of a heart, that a weapon appeared. A weapon born from the very essence of the organ itself. Yet no one was certain when it first truly appeared. Used and molded in both light and dark energy, the item communicated with its owner and would carry out its orders no matter what they were.

The keyblade.

With it, any lock or keyhole could be opened or sealed. Even the very 'hearts' of the different worlds themselves. There were many uses for such a powerful weapon, and those that already wielded them were constantly on the lookout for new recruits. People with a strong heart and exceptional strength were tested, and if the keyblade approved then they too earned the right to carry one.

A problem with the keyblade's locking/unlocking ability was the fact it could also 'unlock a person's heart', which would forcefully take it from the body and cause the body to fade away. However, if the heart was exceptionally strong then the body would stay behind in an eternal slumber until the heart finally returned to its unmoving shell. This was also one of the many reasons that the Realm of Light and Realm of Darkness constantly fought.

It was discovered that when many, many hearts were brought together into one place they would condense together into a massive conglomerate. It was over this 'Kingdom Hearts' that so many lives were lost, hearts taken, and people lost to the darkness or faded away in the light. This 'heart of all worlds' exuded the promise of unquestionable power and wisdom, and the one to control it would have become as great as a god.

Those wielding keyblades of light clashed against those wielding keyblades of darkness, hoping to create the ultimate Keyblade that would allow them to control the massive power of Kingdom Hearts. Sadly, the battles to forge the χ-blade culminated in the total annihilation of every participant, leaving behind only their weapons in a massive keyblade graveyard on a dusty, war torn planet. For years to come, the large-scale assault was known to all that didn't take part as the Keyblade War.

Anyone left alive with the power to direct their heart scattered to the far corners of the different worlds, masters of the blade in their own right. Over time these keyblade masters passed on their art while embracing the side of light, retiring to the third and final realm situated between the Realms of Light and Darkness, otherwise known as the Realm Between. Though a shaky peace had been established in this place between the two extremes they were still diligent in their search lest darkness try to overtake the worlds once again.

And from here our story begins.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The whole area was bathed in darkness. The only light source in the entire musty underground laboratory was a few candles spaced sporadically throughout the room. But that was alright. He had fallen and embraced the darkness long ago. In doing so he had betrayed his team, betrayed his country, and betrayed the very laws of life itself.

For he was afraid of death. It was true. There was so much left to learn in this world and yet so little time to learn it all. Catalog it. Add it to his own personal reservoir. But for this dream to happen, he needed power. He needed immortality. And it was thanks to the darkness he had so willingly allowed into his heart that this dream was nearly complete.

His reverie was interrupted by one of his soldiers appearing in the room, dropping to a knee in servitude and pure fear for his life. Clad in the camouflaged jounin garb of Otogakure, the man swallowed shakily behind his full multicolored facemask before quickly stuttering out his report. "O-Orochimaru-sama…please p-p-pardon m-my interruption b-b-ut you ha-have a guest who d-did not heed your instruct-tions for solitude and forced m-me-me to announce his arrival."

The leader, Orochimaru, former Snake Sannin of Konohagakure and S-class traitor to his home village, hummed thoughtfully as he ran a pure white hand over the large glass case bolted to the wall. The small form floating within twitched and caused the viscous fluid inside to shake. He truly enjoyed the fear he caused within his ninja. After all, it was the easiest to control someone if they believe you'll kill them or their family on a whim.

He was a man in his 50's, though because of experimentation and forbidden ninjutsu that allowed him to project his soul into another body, you would never guess. His hair was long and pure black, with snow-white pale skin and amber eyes. The pupils were slit and the skin underneath the eyes held purple markings that gave him the appearance of a serpent. His clothing was rather plain, consisting of a grayish-tan t-shirt and long-sleeved black undershirt, and black pants. A large purple cord acted as a belt and he wore bluish earrings shaped like snake fangs, finishing up with black open-toed ninja sandals.

"Very well. I'm feeling particularly forgiving so I believe I'll allow you to live for now. Go and fetch him." The man bowed and all but ran from the room, thankful his master hadn't murdered him on the spot. A moment or so passed before the jounin returned, motioning towards the door as he saluted his boss.

"Here he is, Orochi-herk!" The man jerked violently when a snake as thick as an encyclopedia burst through his chest in a shower of gore, bathing the reptile in a shade of dark crimson. Orochimaru smirked and lowered his arm to his side, dispelling the summoned animal to let it return to its own world. The man's body dropped to the ground with a dull 'thunk' and the sannin turned away, no longer giving it any thought.

"That was quite _dark_ of you, boy." An old, raspy voice said from just outside the door. If anything, Orochimaru's grin grew wider. He spun in his place and gave a mock bow towards the doorway, a pleased hiss escaping his throat at the prospect of what was to come.

"Well I did say I wouldn't kill him at _that_ moment. I never said anything about ending his life sometime after."

"…so you did."

"So have you finally come to view the experiments…Xehanort?" The mysterious voice finally entered the room, stepping over the corpse with a flourish. He was a rather old man, bald except for thin eyebrows and a curled, silver goatee. His ears were pointed and his irises shone yellow. He had broad, hunched shoulders and a crooked back. A feeble appearance that deceived all who didn't know him, and masked his immense power under the ruse of being elderly. His clothing was composed of a white and black coat with a red inner lining, over a white shirt with two thin black belts, black pants, as well as white gloves and calf-high black boots.

"Yes, I figured it was time to check up on your research. I pray it has been enlightening?" Orochimaru nodded and moved towards the suspended glass case, pointing inside as Xehanort drew closer. Floating in limbo was what looked like a newborn baby, its skin bluish-black and its eyes were rounds orbs of pure yellow. The elderly man took one look and scoffed, clearly unsatisfied by the results. "This is it?"

"Yesssss…what is wrong with the test subject?"

"It is pitiful. Though it was born from darkness, it shall never be able to harness a powerful heart within itself. I daresay it would take decades before it even remotely grew in strength enough to hold _my_ heart."

"Then give me more! Tell me more secrets of the darkness! If I had greater intelligence on the subject I could create such a being in half the time!" Xehanort chuckled and raised his hand, thick black energy swirling around his gloved fingers as he held it before him. The energy expanded in a large flash of black that filtered away to reveal his weapon of choice; his own personal keyblade.

It was a powerful looking weapon, containing a spiky, black guard resembling demonic wings, a horned, demonic head just above the handle, two barbed shafts with a hollow set between them, and teeth resembling a battle axe split into three almost claw-like protrusions. A demonic-looking blue eye rested on the head. There was also an eye in the middle of the keychain hanging down at the bottom of it. Lastly, its coloring was pure black with silver markings etched along the whole of it.

The snake summoner eyed it curiously, having never seen it before but it gave him the feeling that it was beneficial to the current situation. "And that is?"

"Oh…just something I know you'll enjoy. You see while you have failed your end of the deal it does not mean you did not carry your orders out faithfully. And so to help you I have decided I would keep my end of the bargain as well. You wished for immortality, yes? Then I shall give you the steps to become one that never dies." The snake could nearly feel his mouth watering at the idea. While Xehanort never actually told him what he would need to become undying, he figured that strange axe-looking sword was a part of the equation.

"Yes! Thank you! If I become immortal I have all the time in the world to devote towards your research! No more worrying about death creeping upon me, having to look over my shoulder in fear! What do I have to do?" The old man smirked and was suddenly right in front of Orochimaru. Before the sannin could stutter a word, a heavy weight jabbed into his chest and he felt it turn counter-clockwise. A loud click echoed in his ears as his body grew numb and unresponsive. His lungs failed to take in breath as something left his chest only to float away as his limbs deteriorated into black ash.

And then Orochimaru was no more.

A small flick of his hand and Xehanort willed his keyblade back into the depths of his own blackened heart. A toothy grin spread across his face as he directed a bolt of darkness towards the glass case which destroyed it in one go. "I may have partially lied." he said to no one in particular. "While I cannot truly give someone immortality within the mortal coil, I have given you an even greater gift. By unlocking your heart you will live on forever within Kingdom Hearts. Be proud of yourself as you have added quite a bit of needed darkness."

"Can we blow this place already? For a world situated in the Realm Between, it's pretty backwater. They don't even have cars or planes in this dump! Ninjas? I mean, seriously."

"Calm yourself, Vanitas. I only visited this world to collect more hearts. I knew he would fail in his attempts to create a suitable body with the limited information I gave him and therefore the greed in his heart would swell. His inner darkness would grow and it all worked exactly as I planned!" Xehanort reared his arms back, an almost maniacal smile on his face as his hands and fingers twitched in anticipation.

From the back wall, the one known as Vanitas uncrossed his arms and strode forward to his master's side. He was a young looking man clad entirely in a black and red organic-looking bodysuit, with light purplish-red boots and dark red gloves with black fingers. There was also a small cape-like fabric situated around his waist. His entire head was covered by a silver helmet covered with dark glass that created a sort of bubble to protect his features.

"Yeah, yeah…So can we just destroy this place now, Master Xehanort? I'm itching to show these fools what real power looks like." Vanitas summoned his own keyblade in a cloud of purple flame, one he dubbed as 'Void Gear'. The teeth and head were black with a red outline and possessed a round, cog-like shape. The handle was red and the guard had the same coloration and cog-like protrusions. The shaft was predominantly colored in shades of grey and sported a copper-colored gear in the center, with two intersecting, black chains wrapped around it. Two more chains were wrapped around the base of the shaft in a similar fashion. Just like Xehanort's, it had two eyes; one in the head and one in the hilt. Its keychain was composed of three connected cogs with the charm made up of a split gear put together in an S-fashion.

Xehanort placed his arms behind his back and looked at the door to the laboratory, smirking at the figure that stood there. It was a boy of about 14 years of age with jet black hair that spiked out in a strange pattern and coal black eyes. He wore an outfit similar to Orochimaru but still different. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt which was open at the torso, with a small fan on his collar. His pants were dark blue with a blue cloth hanging halfway up his stomach to his knees. There was also a smaller purple rope belt around his waist tied in a bow that held a straight sword. His wrists were covered in grey armguards and he wore a pair of open-toed sandals that were apparently the norm for these ninja folk.

"Who are you and what have you done to Orochimaru?" he asked, his right hand slowly inching the weapon out of his sheathe. Vanitas chuckled and raised his keyblade into an attack form, his left hand in front of him to act as a counterweight while his opposing hand held the keyblade above his head at an angle. The masked boy would have rushed to attack but a halting hand from his mentor gave him reason to pause.

Noting his apprentice was following his order, Xehanort turned his yellowed eyes towards the newcomer and fixed him with an inquisitive stare. "I have sent him to become a part of something much greater. As for who I am…you may call me Master Xehanort. What is your name, young man?"

"…Uchiha Sasuke. I didn't care for him but I needed his power to become stronger and you took that from me." His eyes bled red into his clan's doujutsu known as the sharingan while his hand never strayed from his sword's hilt, causing Xehanort to nod appreciatively.

"Tell me; do you know how to actually use that weapon? Or is it just for show?" Sasuke could hear the contempt in the old man's voice and it caused his underlying anger to resurface. This bastard just killed his teacher right before his very eyes and even though the Uchiha was planning on doing that once he had learned all he could from the sannin, how was he going to grow stronger now? With a roar he slammed his weapon back into its covering and formed three quick handsigns while focused all the chakra he could into his legs and left arm. The skin exploded with electricity as he rushed forward in a burst, aiming to thrust his lightning covered arm through the elder male's chest.

"CHIDORI!"

Xehanort regarded the sprinting teen with something akin to boredom before he blurred from Sasuke's tunnel vision and grabbed him by his extended wrist. That in itself was a bad idea as the lightning chakra would send a surge into the person's hand and therefore the body, but Xehanort was wholly unaffected by such a response. His hand was wreathed in darkness that somehow negated the technique. He motored his arm and sent Sasuke soaring towards the wall but the ninja spun and impacted with his feet, tensing the muscles to absorb the inertia before rushing back towards the ground.

Even before his feet were planted solidly, he had already initiated the well practiced seals for his family's signature attack. Weaving chakra through his lungs he breathed deeply and expelled the energy between his fingers. The chakra ignited and exploded into a large fireball that completely consumed Xehanort in its wake, burning the old man to a crisp. Or so he thought.

As he siphoned away his chakra and forced the technique to end, his mouth dropped open in shock as his special eyes imprinted the sight into his memories. Before him was a large wall composed entirely out of ice, glistening brightly in the low light and without a scratch on it! It was just like that day over a year ago when he fought against Haku and his fireball was ineffective against the enemy ninja's ice mirrors. The real problem here was his chakra-sensing eyes could not detect even a trace amount of the energy flowing through the frost. "W-what the-?"

A crack appeared in the middle of the miniature glacier before shattering completely, leaving behind a thin coating of the cold element along the floors and walls. Vanitas stood before his master with his keyblade pointed directly at Sasuke, a low blue light emanating from the end tip.

"What should we do with him? He's starting to piss me off."

"I think it would do you some good to gain some experience in a spar against a child that fights without a keyblade. You never know who you will face in the future."

Sasuke could almost feel the condescending smirk hidden behind that blank mask and the idea thoroughly ticked him off. A spar? He would show them! He'd kill the young fool, take his weird weapon and then kill the old man before he could vanish again. That giant key like thing could apparently create non-chakra influenced ice which could be very handy once he faced down Itachi. Especially if it made fire techniques ineffective in the long run.

Metal grated against metal as he finally pulled the chokuto free and channeled his elemental chakra through the blade. The steel began to vibrate at a much higher frequency, increasing the cutting and piercing power it possessed while making it dangerous to the touch. It was a variation of the regular chidori, one of a few he had been working on. And now, it would finally see battle.

Vanitas quickly learned that the lightning coated sword was now much sharper than before as he had to increase the amount of darkness flowing in his heart and sword to compensate. As the two blades clashed together and yet neither yielded, Xehanort was quietly watching the whole ordeal. He was mildly impressed that this Sasuke was able to go toe to toe against his student without a keyblade but the real kicker was what dwelled within Sasuke's own heart.

Nothing but strong, concentrated darkness. Even more so than Orochimaru. Oh yes, there were faint echoes of light but they were always swallowed up in the end by the dark energy. It all seemed to be centered on his brother and past from what he could glimpse. Very interesting…perhaps he could use the boy just like he used his master? "Vanitas! That's enough!" he commanded, the authority in his voice making the armored male falter. Sasuke used the lull in battle to grab his keyblade by the shaft and pull, wrenching it free before channeling his chakra throughout his entire body in another variation he had named as the chidori current.

Vanitas' body took the full force of the lightning at close range, causing his muscles to spasm and constrict painfully before he was sent reeling by a kick to the solar plexus. Xehanort, however, was more focused on Sasuke's hand than the well being of his student. Where the keyblade was touching his fingers, nothing visible happened but the man could feel the changes. The extensive alteration that took place deep inside his aura. Oh ho! So even the keyblade knew there was something interesting in the boy's heart! Strong of will and strong of heart, indeed.

The ex-leaf genin kept his eyes on the two while weighing the new weapon in his hands, frowning when he couldn't make not even a snowflake appear. Having quickly thrown off the lightning in his system and recovering from the kick, Vanitas held out his hand and attempted to recall his keyblade to his side but the Void Gear wouldn't budge. That was just another piece of evidence that an accidental keyblade inheritance ceremony had taken place. The boy grunted and strained again, tendrils of darkness spiraling around his arm before the weapon finally reappeared in his waiting hand in a plume of violet flame.

Xehanort twitched his fingers and motioned the clawed gesture behind the shinobi, willing a door to darkness to appear. As the large black, purple, and white shimmering portal appeared, the old man was on Sasuke in an instant. He couldn't even move his arm as the keyblade master's gloved fingers curled around his throat, nearly cutting off his air supply and somehow draining away his urge to continue fighting as negativity overtook his mind.

"You now have the power of the keyblade resting within your heart. A heart of nothing but darkness. You said you wished to become stronger? Then let us see how well you fare in a realm of void of light and teeming with shadow." His minor monologue finished, he chucked Sasuke through the dark doorway and closed it completely before turning to his student with a most displeased glare.

"I…could've beaten him."

"Possibly. But you were too cocky!" Vanitas actually flinched at the anger his master was suddenly radiating but he knew exactly why. He nearly lost his keyblade and life if the fight had continued on. "If you were destroyed then all of my plans would have been for naught! You and Ventus are to combine once your darkness and his light are exactly even to form the χ-blade. That will allow me to control Kingdom Hearts and remake the worlds into those of pure darkness." He breathed out slowly, reigning in his anger before he struck at his student. "And if you were to be destroyed, you would fade away without ever feeling complete." The armored boy flinched again.

"Forgive me, master. I…won't fail you again."

"See that you do not. I have been invited to the Mark of Mastery Exam hosted by Master Eraqus and we shall be traveling there shortly. It will allow me to view how Ventus has grown since I last left him in my old friend's care. The forthcoming events are critical in our plans, Vanitas." The male nodded slowly, rising fully to his feet before motioning around the room.

"What are we going to do about this world, then? I don't particularly like the idea of a whole world full of people as strong or stronger than us. Even if they can't travel off planet." Xehanort lowered his head in head in thought, seconds ticking away before his eyes shot open and a small smile blossomed on his lips.

"Then I suppose we shall make this the first world that is reborn in darkness, my apprentice."

"I was hoping you'd say that." Vanitas chuckled and snapped his fingers, summoning all manner of strange monsters to his side. It had happened when Xehanort first unlocked the darkness of his first student. While Ventus had fallen into a coma, Vanitas was born from the orb of blackened energy. But Vanitas was a being of the dark with unchecked negative emotions surrounding his 'birth' and 'life'. The emotions gave rise to creatures completely under Vanitas' control since they were, in essence, an extension of himself. Nicknamed the Unversed, the boy used them to help carry out their unlawful deeds. And right now, they were going to be used to destroy a whole planet full of hearts ripe for the taking.

"Go get 'em, boys. We're completely taking this place apart!" As the monsters scattered and more showed up to take their place, the being of darkness turned towards his master with a question in his mind. "Wouldn't it be easier just to unlock the heart of the world and invite the darkness in?"

"That will possibly take longer than I would like. I don't wish to be late to Eraqus' invite, now do I? Once you are finished, return to the Land of Departure. I shall lend you a hand before I leave." He once again summoned his own large keyblade and used it to destroy the roof of the building, carving through the underground rock it was situated under until he finally breached through to the surface. From there he focused a large amount of darkness into his hands before aiming at the bright morning sky and firing. The sickly ball traveled into the atmosphere and expanded, mixing with the ozone and plunging the globe into a faux nighttime. Nodding to himself, Xehanort created another portal and walked through into the Lanes Between, plotting a course for the one of the other worlds located in the Realm Between.

Vanitas began to chuckle again. That chuckle turned into laughter. That laughter exploded into full on hilarity as more and more Unversed spawned and rushed out into the world. The people of this place would never know what hit them as they lost their hearts, bodies, and minds to the darkness. It was a thing of pure beauty to him and he moved off to find more people to fight. No way he was going to disappoint Master Xehanort again even if it meant leaving leaving this place early. As he cut down a silver-haired boy wearing glasses who had gotten too nosy during his conversation with his master, he just knew the times ahead were those of major change.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It truly was dark here. The lack of anything bright or cheerful put a severe cramp in her personality. How long had she been trapped here? In this place filled with nothing but shadow, lacking animals or plants or anything one would normally find out in nature. Instead there were spires of black onyx and purple-black skies as far as she could see. The grounds were blackish rock bathed in grey light. And yet no matter how far she traveled, nothing changed.

"Nothing but darkness…this truly is nothing but a realm without light…"

She had fought one of her best friends, a boy who had lost himself to darkness. Terra was a bright young man on his way to becoming a keyblade master but due to the manipulations of Master Xehanort, he was lost. The old man had used Terra to become a new vessel to hold his heart and put his plan into action, even going as far as having Vanitas and Ventus fuse together and form the almighty χ-blade. But thanks to her intervention the χ-blade was destroyed and Vanitas returned to nothingness though her young friend lost his heart in the process.

She had taken the unmoving boy back to the Land of Departure and locked its keyhole using her Master's keyblade. The man, Master Eraqus, had given her information privy only to those of the master rank when she became the only one to be promoted. It was said that the land was too valuable a place where both light and darkness lived in harmony, so if it came down to it the girl would be forced to do as she did. The whole world transformed into a completely different place where anyone that visited would become lost in oblivion. Only she, as the one who locked it away, would keep her wits. She left the lifeless body of Ventus sitting in Eraqus' chair to wait for the day his heart would finally return to its rightful place.

But things became even worse after that. She had tracked down her other possessed friend and the two fought. In the end, Terra-Xehanort tried to unlock Xehanort's heart from his body but the action caused more damage than was anticipated. The keyblade dropped from his fingers and flashed away as a large, muscular shadow beast rose from behind his shaking form. The dark creature suddenly lost consistency and fell to the ground, creating a new portal of darkness that Terra-Xehanort fell backwards into. So she leapt after him, transforming into her protective armor and changing her keyblade into its glider form.

They seemed to fall forever even as she pushed the thrusters of her jet into overdrive. Finally she was able to grab him by the arm and pull him onto the vehicle before turning the glider around and rocketing towards the fleeting door to light. No matter how fast the girl went, she knew neither would make it in time if things continued on their current course. So she made a heavy decision that pretty much damned herself to this world of black. Desummoning her armored shell, she positioned it to hold the now white-haired Terra as her keyblade changed back into weapon form. Now missing the added weight, she placed the object in his hand and sent it sailing on its course. He was able to escape before the shimmering portal finally closed.

And now she, Master Aqua, the last remaining member of the trio of keyblade apprentices who studied under Master Eraqus and the only one to gain the mark of mastery, was trapped within the realm of never-ending darkness and blight.

Aqua was an attractive girl of about 15 or 16 years of age with bright blue eyes and shiny hair of the same color. It was a bit short, reaching down to her chin in certain places but hung down to the nape of her neck in the back. She wore a black and blue high-collared halter top that left her upper back exposed, two pink, intersecting belts over her B-cup chest, and black biker shorts. On her arms were a pair of detached white bell-sleeves and tan, fingerless gloves. She also had a small, segmented piece of armor on each of her upper arms. On her legs were a pair of black stockings which reach to about halfway up her thighs. The girl also bore two strips of blue cloth that draped over either side of her hips along with a smaller, white strip of cloth tied around her waist draped in the same manner. Finally, she wore pointed, armored, silver boots with a sharp "hook" on the outer side of each.

It was so…boring here. No matter how much she walked or how long she moved, the scenery stayed dreary and dark. She wanted to know what happened to Terra. She wanted to know if King Mickey or Master Yen Sid had done anything to help in the fight against Master Xehanort. All _she_ had to protect herself here was her master's own personal blade but even that was depleted in strength due to it not being attuned to her own heart.

Aqua broke from her thoughts with a weary sigh. She was walking along a twisted, mountainous path with large mushroom-like growths with strange slits that glowed an ominous blue. Her feet dragged on as she continued to move forward, staggering slightly in her movement as her arms dangled listlessly at her side. "Seems like I've been walking for ages." A hand moved up to brush the fringe out of her eyes. "How long have I been down here?"

A deep rumbling shook the air as movement was caught at the corner of the bluenette's vision. A massive beast of shadows rose out of the abyss and looked directly at her with large, pure yellow eyes. It had strange hair like snakes, small bat wings, and had a large heart-shaped hole directly in the center of its stomach. Pure dark energy was drifting off its body in waves. Aqua jumped back and flicked her hand, standing straight as Eraqus' keyblade appeared in a rush of light pink energy and dissipating sakura blossoms. It might've been large and imposing but she knew she could defeat it.

Until another creature rose up behind her, as imposing as the first. That was followed by two more that formed out of the darkness from the canyon's edges. Now…that might be a problem. Aqua 'tsked' in disbelief, her gaze hardening for the upcoming battle before she scoffed and looked towards the ground, her eyes softening at the inevitability. The black and white checkered Master Keeper keyblade disappeared the same way it came forth as Aqua's stance dropped into one of utter defeat.

"Maybe…I should just fade into the darkness here."

Three of the massive Darkside Heartless turned and began moving farther away towards the far end of her pathway. Aqua's eyes could just only make out a reddish-orange glow at the far end of the path where they were moving to while the fourth reared back its large fist to crush the young warrior. But as the hand rocketed towards her, two bright flashes of true light lit up in the distance and forced themselves through the beast's heart-shaped hole. The Darkside screeched in pain before immediately fading away without a trace. Aqua watched in shock as her eyes followed the two projectiles, the light around them dying down just enough to reveal they were both Terra's and Ventus' keyblades bathed in a healthy glow. The two weapons cut down the other Heartless just as they reached the glowing object before turning and flying back into the atmosphere and disappearing in a flash.

For once in a long time, Aqua actually chuckled and smiled before her hand shot to her lips in disbelief. She…actually smiled? It had been so long since such an emotion was felt by the young woman. She had almost forgotten how to do such an action. Her hand dipped into her pocket and retrieved a small, blue star-shaped charm. All of her friends and acquaintances…they were waiting for her return. And she knew all of their hearts were still connected. Aqua couldn't fade away now. She couldn't actually believe such a thought had passed through her mind!

"There's always a way." she said with strength to reinforce her decision. Shaking her head slightly, the girl pocketed the item and turned towards the still present glowing sphere. Before she knew it, she was in front of the object yet she had no clue as to what it could be. The small tickling at the edge of her senses alerted her to the presence of light situated within. That right there proved that there was no way she could leave it alone now.

A small line of light erupted from the tip of the Master Keeper and connected with the outer shell as she aimed the weapon at it. She noted resistance before a satisfying click resounded and the orange-red orb unraveled like a flower opening its petals at first light.

The energy condensed and spread out into nine different large 'tails', twisting and writhing before retracting back inside of its core. The 'core' also just so happened to be a fellow human being. "A child? No…he looks to be around my age. But what's he doing here? How did he get here?" The questions came easily enough but there was a lack of answers to satisfy her. For one thing, the boy looked fast asleep. Almost…like…

She dropped to her knees as her hand hovered over the unconscious male's chest with her brow furrowed in concentration. What she found was simply amazing. He was pure light but contained a completely separate darkness centered in his navel that branched out like a spider web throughout the entirety of his body. She was uncertain how the two extremes managed to remain unmixed but that was just another question to add to her ever growing list. However, the thing that disheartened her most was the hollow space situated where his heart should have been beating.

"Dammit…just like Ven…he's lost his heart…" She said sadly and rested her hands on her thighs before taking a closer look at her fellow guest. He looked beaten up, as though he had just gotten out of a fight recently. He was maybe a few centimeters taller than her but still under Terra's height, but then again he was probably still growing. The male's hair was spiky like Ven's but it poked out everywhere and was a bright yellow compared to her friend's dull shade. His choice of clothing was a horrendously garish orange jumpsuit with a white trim and red spiral on its shoulder and back that had seen better years (maybe). There was a pouch tied to his leg filled suspiciously with weapons, a beautiful green jewel necklace, and a strange metal plate tied around his forehead with an odd figure etched into its surface. Plus there were strange scars on his cheeks that were perfectly straight and thin in size.

Aqua should really have been moving on, looking for a new way to escape this blasted place. But she couldn't in good conscience just leave him unguarded especially if the boy was missing his heart in such a dangerous place. Besides…it would be good to take a break for once. A few minutes passed by as she rested her weary legs and tired arms but a gentle hum at her side caught the keyblade master's attention.

Master Keeper was humming and hopping slightly from where she had placed it at her side, skittering a bit along the ground as it pointed towards the boy once again. "What are you trying to tell me?" she asked as she picked it up. It shook again beneath her grip and the urge to place the tip against his chest came to the forefront of her mind. As metal met clothed skin, a loud click resounded and caused her eyes to widen.

The boy had no heart. What did she just unlock?

A burst of light blossomed on his torso as a whispy light coalesced into an actual heart that slowly rose from his chest. The red-orange energy returned in the blink of an eye and lashed out at the fleeing organ. A second energy the color of Aqua's hair appeared from where the heart had escaped and wound its way around the orangish whip and held it in place. An offshoot split from the main coil and wrapped around the heart like a vice before sucking it back inside the unmoving blonde. Three seconds passed before the male's eyes shot open wide as oxygen was greedily sucked into his lungs, a hand grasping at his chest in obvious discomfort.

Aqua couldn't believe what she was seeing. '_His actual heart was trapped inside of his own body? Why couldn't I sense it? I've never heard of such a situation before…when someone loses their heart, it leaves the body completely and the remains fade away into darkness. But he was like Ven and somehow wound up here in the Realm of Darkness! Oh, I'm so confused!_'

The boy's panting had grown less violent and more regular during the woman's internal thought process, his now visible bright blue eyes so reminiscent of her own looking at her with guarded emotions. Doing her best to calm her own speeding heartbeat, she did her best to put on a smile and appear nonthreatening. "Um, hello! My name's Aqua…how are you feeling?"

He worked his lips and tongue, dry after so much disuse before finally croaking out a rough sentence in response. "Where am I?" Aqua scratched at her cheek in reflex, unsure how to respond.

"This is a place without light…the Realm of Darkness. Do you remember what happened to you at all?" The boy closed his eyes in concentration as he did his best to go back into the past. He suddenly sat up so quickly that Aqua nearly fell back on her butt in response.

"I was…on a training trip. We only finished a year out of the three we were going to be gone…I was working out when the sun disappeared and everything got dark. These weird monster things appeared and started attacking everything in sight. I…fought them off the best I could but it was like my attacks could barely injure them. Then this asshole wearing some weird red and black armor and a helmet appeared, shot fire at me from this odd sword…key thing he had, and then I blacked out." As he did his best to explain, the keyblade master found herself nibbling on the nail of her thumb in worry.

"It sounds like your world was consumed by darkness…this, um…'asshole'…did he seem really cocky, like he was better than you? And did his weapon look like a bunch of gears or cogs?"

The blonde looked at her with narrowed eyes, his head bobbing slowly to show it was true. "Yeeeeeah…I decked him across the face but he spun and almost cut me across the chest with whatever his weapon was. And what the hell does fallen to darkness mean? Were you a part of it?" he finished angrily, dragging his body backwards and away from his fellow human.

"No! No...but I've seen such powers before…and I know who attacked you. By what you've said, you fought against the Unversed and their leader Vanitas. The asshole, as you say, I've fought as well. And as far as I know he's been destroyed…" '_And Ventus lost his heart in the process…_'

"So he's dead? Good...so…you never explained the whole darkness thing." Aqua cringed, knowing it was going to be tough to explain it to him. How would you tell a person that all of their friends and family were lost without sounding like a bastard? 'Oh hey, yeah you see everyone you loved lost their hearts and faded away into nothing. It's probably worse than death. Sucks, huh?'

So she did her best to try and soften the blow. After all, while normally she was forbidden from telling others that there were other worlds, in this situation it didn't apply. He listened intently through the explanation without a sound as his eyes stayed glued to the blackened rock beneath them. She did not know him well. Hell, she still didn't even know his name. But it disheartened the girl to see him acting so dead. She was still resting on her knees and her legs were growing stiff from the lack of movement, but she felt it would be impolite to move and break his thought process just to stretch.

More time passed in this place of never-ending black when the blonde finally twitched and looked up at her. His eyes seemed almost hollow as he sought out her own blue irises, unshed tears growing at the edges but dared not to fall. He looked so…vulnerable.

"Tell me. Is there any way to bring them back? Get their hearts back and fix my world?"

"I'm sorry…but I really don't know." He rubbed at his eyes, muttering lowly how it was uncool to cry in front of pretty girls but she heard him anyways and felt her cheeks darken slightly in embarrassment. Looking at him in that moment caused the girl to be reminded of Ven and how he would always try to act mature despite his younger age. But he was obviously around her own years. In fact, he was possibly older than he looked because he had been trapped here sometime before the events at the Keyblade Graveyard and for whatever reason you didn't seem to age in this place. But no matter what age he was, his vulnerability dictated that he needed one of these.

She leaned forward and gently pulled him into an embrace, feeling him stiffen against her at the sudden contact. A curious and reasonable reaction but his arms did slowly hug her back as they found purchase against her middle. "No matter what fate befalls your loved ones, your hearts will always be connected by the bonds you share. Don't despair, alright?" He swallowed and nodded slowly, enjoying the contact she was giving him. No one else had ever hugged him in such a way except for Tsunade and Shizune but they were older and like family. This Aqua girl was a complete stranger around his age and yet was trying to cheer him up in such familiar way. It felt…nice hugging her.

"Thanks." he murmured. "And the name's Naruto. It's nice to meet you, Aqua, even if it _is_ in some crazy way." She giggled and released him, watching as he smiled and scratched at his blushing cheeks awkwardly. At least she was able to perk him up a bit. It was in that moment that Aqua gained a fellow traveler to move around with in the quest to, well…at the moment it was just walking around but escape was high on her priorities.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Time.

Time was an illusion. Especially here in this world made from the void. Nothing ever changed except for the scenery. And it was because of this, Naruto and Aqua were lost in its timeless passage. How many hours had pass?

Days?

Weeks?

Even years?

Naruto had been stuck there for a much longer passage of time, but Aqua had spent more than him in the land of consciousness. They didn't even know what their exact ages were anymore even though the blonde still looked to be around fourteen-fifteen and Aqua was lost in her middle teens. The duo spent much of their time talking with one another learning what they could since, seriously, what else was there to do?

He had discovered much from his new companion, such as the dealings of the heart and the stark differences of darkness and light that seemed so prevalent outside his planet. But the more he thought about it, those concepts were a major part of his everyday life as well. And he wasn't just speaking about day and night. Aqua, in turn, was amazed by the abilities he possessed that were commonplace among his people. Real copies that housed a separate yet similar consciousness? It just went to show how special and varied all the worlds truly were.

A major problem they had come to face was when the Heartless creatures would appear for a fight. Aqua was able to destroy them with ease and release the hearts that were trapped inside upon their deaths. But no matter how much damage Naruto inflicted, kunai and shinobi techniques seemed to take much longer to be rid of them. It frustrated the blonde to no end and caused Aqua to ponder over many days whether or not to pass on her own power. While it could make him more powerful and able to defend themselves easier, it would also cause him to draw closer to the heart's sway towards the extremes. And even if he was still a new friend, there was no way she was going to lose him like she lost Terra and Ventus.

A problem Aqua had stumbled upon in her musings was that she had already inadvertently passed on the power to wield a keyblade to that young girl Kairi. The incident took place when the little redhead had grabbed the master's weapon in fear back at the Radiant Garden world. Plus, her own personal keyblade was lost to her as she had used it to guide Terra out from the void and she wasn't sure if Eraqus' would work in the same way.

They were currently resting underneath a large outcropping after having walked around for possibly days. Naruto was looking out at the horizon, something Aqua noticed he did a lot when the two were silent. She knew he was still mourning his destroyed home world and wished she could help him but the problem was she was also suffering from the same ordeal. The thoughts of Ventus and Terra tore away at her psyche and would occasionally cause the fighter to withdraw into herself, just as Naruto was now. But perhaps…

"Naruto?"

He blinked and looked over to her, giving a small smile as he focused on her.

"Yeah? What's up?"

"Remember how I explained the keyblade inheritance ceremony?" He nodded. "Would you like to give it a try? I mean, it would give you an easier time fighting against the enemies here and perhaps two keyblade bearers will find a way to escape than just one by herself."

"Are you sure? I thought you mentioned that you lost your own keyblade. Would it even work with someone else's?"

She smiled warmly. "We won't know until we try, will we? As a master, I have the right to decide." And her decision was already made. Naruto had proven in their time together that he fought to protect others and those who were close to him. The power he coveted was not for his own personal gain, and it reflected in the echoes of his heart. Master Keeper flashed into her hand as she raised it in front of her face. He had never said it aloud, but Naruto always thought she looked rather majestic when she handled the weapon. Her movements were refined from years of training and it always showed whenever they entered a battle.

"So I just…touch it?" She nodded and turned the keyblade upside down, grasping the thin black shaft in her hands and angling the hilt towards his waiting palm like a king presenting his scepter towards a vassal. A fleeting memory of her younger self standing proudly in front of Eraqus surfaced in her mind at the sight. The day had finally come for her to earn the right to wield her very own keyblade and the poor girl's heart had been beating like a drum against her rib cage. Her mentor had smiled kindly and kneeled in front of her young body as his iconic black and white weapon hovered in front of her tiny hands, just out of reach. The chant to begin the ceremony issued forth from his lips, and Aqua felt herself reiterating the exact same phrase that she had memorized for such an event.

"In your hand, take this Key. So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking, its wielder you shall one day be. And you will find me, friend—no ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, or below, or above, so long as you champion the ones you love." Naruto's fingers slowly curled around the dark-colored hilt as he pulled it from her. It was heavy, not as weighty as expected, but there would be added power in his blows if he were to swing it around.

"I was expecting a big flash of light or something to mark my glorious ascension into awesomeness. Did it work?" Aqua giggled before placing a gloved hand forward and willing it to return. Instead it stayed snugly clasping against his palm. His whole being felt different, nearly radiating light like a beacon. It seemed as a keyblade that once belonged to a man that lived solely for the light, it was really enjoying being held in his hands.

"It did. Congratulations, Naruto. You've been approved and now and have the right to summon your own keyblade." she smiled. It didn't help that the blonde ninja was bouncing in his spot like a giddy five year old. He quickly passed the blade back to her before crouching and shaking his arms excitedly.

"So how do I do it? Huh? Do I just focus or something?" He stopped his shaking as his face slowly twitched and grunted from the sudden strain. No matter how much he struggled nothing changed and his hand remained empty. Aqua shook her head and grabbed him by the shoulder, if only to end the clear distress evident on his face.

"Stop! The power comes from your heart, not your body! You have to meditate!"He groaned at that and flopped down onto his back, causing the bluenette to sigh. At least now they had an activity to fill in their endless time here in the darkness.

"Gotcha, Aqua-sensei!"

...sensei?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Certain? It's almost gotten boring since I win every time."

"Aqua-chan…you're not going to get me to lose my cool this time."

"Drat…oh well, I tried."

Naruto snorted and dropped into a loose fighting stance, causing Aqua to quirk an eyebrow in question. "Where's your keyblade?"

"We always spar with weapons. I thought we could test your taijutsu for once. After all, I did take time to train you as best I could in case you were ever weaponless. Remember how you felt when you lost Stormfall?" Her hand twitched in response, the fleeting memory of losing her own unique keyblade surfacing in her mind. He had a point…but then again, she could just throw a fireball at the enemy in that case.

Breathing out, she resumed her own stance. Something born from the many times the two had tangled. It was essentially the same way she fought with sword in hand except adjusted to factor in kicks, slaps, or backhands depending on her angle and how the opponent was standing. Naruto's style had been a mess seeing as he was in the middle of relearning hand-to-hand from his previous instructor, but their time together had helped smooth it out into something passable. He enjoyed speed, she worked well with flexibility. He added power when he knew it would connect, she struck at points to take the other person down. Possibly useless against these Heartless beings here in the Realm of Darkness, but it was better to be more safe than sorry.

Naruto's sandal creaked as his weight shifted before he motored both legs to run right into Aqua's zone. The speed at which he did so barely gave the girl enough time to counter his punch. The skin of his fist grazed her blue bangs as she pirouetted away, her foot arching out to use the spin for extra power. The blow connected with his forearm, the sharpened digit at her ankle biting into his flesh and quickly drawing blood. Though they both winced, him from the pain and she from inflicting such a wound, the two continued on. It wasn't the first time an injury such as that was had been sustained and a quick dose of cure magic always fixed them up.

Doing his best to ignore the new pain, Naruto grabbed her around the shin and pulled to make her stumble. As the girl's balance shifted he kicked at the back of her free leg and threw. Aqua was lighter than Naruto and with his greater strength she found herself sailing through the hazy air. Her body rolled into a front flip once until her feet once again reconnected with the earth, her body reactively ducking as the blonde's foot passed over her head followed by his own body.

The two continued on in this fashion for some time until they found themselves in a grappling stalemate. Aqua had him on the ground with her knee just underneath his ribs and a spear hand pointed towards his throat. In her mind she was obviously the winner until she felt something poke her right in the fabric of her belly button, causing the magic-user to gaze down and gasp. The sharpened tip of a kunai was the culprit, being held in place by a widely grinning Naruto. When she still didn't move he poked her again gently and cleared his throat.

"I really don't mind you being so close to me like this but can get off? I've already won and your knee is starting to hurt a little." Aqua, to her credit, merely blushed red as she removed herself from the blonde with dignity, turning away from him and crossing her arms over her chest.

"You cheated." she sniffed, causing Naruto to chuckle and pocket the weapon.

"Ninja." he shot back cheerfully. "Besides, I needed a win for once."

"Whatever, cheater." Laughter escaped the shinobi's mouth, causing the lone woman to turn at look at him in a perplexing manner. How was that hilarious in any way? "Why are you laughing?"

"It's just…phew, when I first met you, you were always so guarded and professional-like. Acting like the master you claimed to be. But now you've actually lightened up and act like a regular teenager. You can take a joke and have fun when you want to." He scratched at his ear, taking a moment to think. "Well actually, we're probably not teenagers anymore…maybe."

"Are you saying I was boring?" She turned around and planted her hands on her hips, sending the smirking boy a glare.

"No…of course no…you're crazy." he corrected in monotone. Aqua huffed and began to walk away, causing him to chuckle and rush after her until he was walking at her side. She was doing her best to continue her act of annoyance but just being next to him at the moment was making the female lose her rigid composure.

Before long she had a small smile herself, even as the two came to pause at the purple-tinted river they had been following for awhile now. It was frigid cold but hey, it was a source of water. While the duo actually had no need for food or water, and sleep was now a luxury, they still indulged themselves when they could. Naruto sighed and ripped off his sweaty jacket, shoes, pants and the new, metallic grey and burnt orange shoulder pauldron and jumped in, yelping at the sudden change in temperature as he slowly did his best to scrub away the filth that had accumulated in its worn fabric.

Aqua had moved farther down and slowly stripped out of her tight-fitting clothing until she was left only in her underwear. The girl never wore a bra seeing as her top gave enough structure, and with her body currently stuck in its teens she didn't have to worry about outgrowing her shirt and having her breasts grow more and get in the way during a fight. What she would give for a new uniform though…both she and Naruto needed a new set of clothes that weren't filled with scrapes and tears. Plus she would forcefully make him choose something of a better coloration. It's only current redeeming quality was it made him easier to spot in the darkness.

As she slowly and carefully washed her own clothes, her eyes drifted over to where her blonde companion was trying to get a bloodstain out of his sleeve. She still found it refreshing to have someone around to spend her purgatory with. Being a girl who spent all of her time refining her skills than chasing after boys, it was embarrassing for her to ever be hit on or have someone looking to form a relationship with her. Her time at Olympus Coliseum with the exuberant Zack always came to mind as an example. Eraqus had been like a father and was much too old for such feelings, Ventus was like her younger brother, and Terra was both a rival and her best friend. But with Naruto…she really had no idea what to truly classify him as.

They had grown close in their time down here. As close as she had been to her other two friends, maybe even closer in their friendship. Though there had been the few times where they were…intimate. That thought alone brought another rise of color in her skin. Summoning his keyblade for the first time had lead to him thanking her profusely and spinning her around in a big hug. The girl had returned it, laughing happily at his appreciation and as the boy had slowly calmed down neither of them had thought to let go of the other. And in that moment, neither knew what truly possessed them to do so as the two tentatively pressed their lips together. Aqua had strongly warded the area with a magical barrier and from there things steadily progressed as years of unreleased hormones and stress washed over the two keyblade users. It had been the first time for both and yet something neither would forget.

True, it had been awkward for awhile after but they bounced back after a time. They had talked it out and agreed it had been spur of the moment but neither called it a mistake. In fact, it had happened again a few 'days' later oddly enough initiated by Aqua. Such feelings were new to her and she had wanted to know if there truly was anything between them or because he was simply the only other human around. It came to be that there was indeed a spark between them.

A few bubbles popped after reaching the surface of the river, causing the blue-haired beauty to blink and look down to see what had caused the noise. It was Naruto, all but his nose up submerged in the water as he floated there like the amphibians he seemed to favor. His eyes were closed and his hair was matted down by the liquid and she almost laughed at the sight until she remembered her state of undress and quickly spun around to hide her nudity. They may have done more than just seen each other naked but that still didn't mean she felt a bit embarrassed when she was in a proper state of mind.

Naruto snorted and stood straight, slowly wrapping his arms around Aqua's waist and resting his chin on her shoulder. "So was there a reason you were staring at me for the last couple minutes, Aqua-chan?" She quickly shook her head, feeling the heat he was somehow generating even in the frigid liquid as she relaxed a bit. He found her shyness to be cute. Hell, he couldn't believe he still had someone like her even with the circumstances they met under.

"No. Just…remembering." That was another thing. He had begun calling her 'Aqua-chan'. Accordingly, he explained that –chan was an honorific used on his planet that denoted closeness or a type of feelings between the two. The gesture made her smile. But in the whole situation, did that make them boyfriend and girlfriend? In the current environment she really didn't know. Lovers was a yes though she never thought that title would ever involve her.

"Well you better stop remembering for a bit. I'm already done and if you keep washing that same spot then you'll rip right through the fabric." She looked down and gasped lightly before sighing forlornly. "I know. I wish I had some new clothes too." he added, taking a look over at the uniform he had worn for such a long time.

"No orange."

"You're terrible." He released her and allowed the woman to climb out to dry their clothing with a fire spell. His mastery of magic was still…not very good, and if he tried to join her then it was more than likely the blonde would incinerate it all. All power, no control. Worked in battle but not where finesse was needed. As she continued on with her work, Naruto flopped down on his back to wait. Silence rested between the two until finally the bluenette broke it with a question that had been asked many times before.

"Why aren't you using your summons to get us clothes again? I remember you saying the summon world was separate from your own even though they were still connected."

"Becaaaaaaaaaause, the darkness interferes with the process somehow and only allows me to call in the young ones that can't speak yet or little tadpoles. And I have nothing to write with so I can't give them a note to take back. Also, as I've explained before, all the toads are naked. They wear cloaks or vests…that's it. They wouldn't have anything you'd like, I guess."

"Better than our clothing falling off of us when it can't keep itself together anymore."

"I'm pretty sure they've tried to reverse summon me many times but I'm going to take a chance and say the darkness interferes there too. Stupid darkness…I miss the sun. And ramen. Especially ramen. Which, by the way, I'm making you eat when we escape."

"_If_ we escape." she countered bitterly, accidentally adding more magical energy into her flame and nearly singeing Naruto's jacket. She quickly brought the anger back under control but Naruto flipped over onto his stomach and crawled up next to her.

"We will. I promise you that. And somehow if only one of us finds a way out and for whatever reason it's me then I promise you I'll get you out no matter what. And when my world is put back together I'll show you around. You'll love it!" That brought a sad smile to her lips but she grabbed one of his hands and squeezed gently.

"I know. And the very same promise back to you. " They smiled at each other, happy for now despite the depressing environment. Redressing, the two took once again to wandering like it was an old pastime. The river widened and widened until they found themselves standing at a sandy shore staring off into a vast distance. In the sky hung a shining moon that actually illuminated the area, shedding light on the large rocky spires that crisscrossed over the edge of the ocean. It was a nice change from the boring scenery the ninja and keyblade master had grown used to.

"Wow…I never thought I'd see something like this again."

"I know, right? It's a welcome change." Naruto took to wandering around on top of the water with his chakra as Aqua sat herself on a flattened black rock. The area seemed off to her and it set her slightly on edge. If Naruto could sense anything he wasn't showing it, leading the girl to believe he simply didn't feel anything was out of place. So maybe she was just extra wary of her new surroundings.

It was then that she noticed a large oval created from darkness right at the edge of the shoreline, reminding the girl of one of the darkness doorways that were used to move between worlds. The shinobi noticed it as well and moved towards it with the intent of seeing what it was but a shout from his blue-haired companion stopped him from sticking a finger into its bowels.

"No! If you enter one of those your heart will become significantly weakened without any protection!"

"But couldn't we use it to leave?"

He watched as her shoulders dropped forward. "We could…but who knows where it will take us. And without my armor, I'm at risk of losing my heart to darkness…and your own armor isn't complete." His blue eyes darted to the spiky piece of armor strapped to his left shoulder and sighed. It was something else he had learned to form when he earned the right to carry a keyblade; the keyblade armor. It was fashioned from a mixture of organic materials and the user's own heart fused together in a synthesis. With such a low amount of elements and materials in their current world, the blonde could only create the starting point of the armor. Aqua had explained how the rest would be created but the hopes of forming his own couldn't be finished until they finally escaped. And sadly, Aqua couldn't create another because her own heart's wavelength was already attuned to her missing metal shell.

Aqua watched as he sighed and slowly moved away from the portal as her own sense of danger increase. The whole situation stunk and it caused her eyes to dart about in worry. She couldn't see anything that would make her so jumpy but her blue orbs were always drawn back towards that gateway. Something must have used it come through or leave, and she was wondering why the portal still even existed.

"I sensed a great darkness around these parts. You are not the culprit I am seeking so it must be him, yes?" She hated when she was right. The female leapt away from the rich baritone that spoke from behind, Master Keeper appearing back in her hand like so many times before. The action caused Naruto to blur into existence next to her as he now too sensed the languid dark emotions rolling just underneath the new figure's surface.

It was a rather tall man with his face covered in red bandages save for his exposed yellowish right eye and mouth, and two intersecting belts around his head, one passing over where his left eye would have appeared. He wore a long, red cape with an odd, angular cut taken out at the chest with the yellow edges. The cut exposed a similarly oblong white symbol on a pitch-black shirt. There was a grey, segmented armor over his sides and abdomen and his legs were covered by a long, black cloth lined with yellow. On a yellow sash around his waist hung three large brown pouches. Lastly there was a scarf around his neck. It was really hard to tell if he was friend or foe but the sneer he was sporting helped give them an idea.

"Who are you and how did you get here?" Naruto asked hotly, an underlying hope of escape hidden in his voice. The man chuckled to himself as his visible eye roamed over the two before settling on the tense blonde, causing his lips to widen in a smirk.

"My name is of unimportance but if you truly wish to call me something then I ask that you refer to me as DiZ. Now then-you, boy. Come with me."

"Why the hell would I do that?"

"The darkness within you. I have use for it."

Wow, this asshole reminded him of those stuck-up council members from once upon a time. It prompted Naruto to stick out his tongue and pull down his eyelid in response. "Buzz off. I'm not leaving without Aqua and the darkness I have inside isn't exactly mine. But I sure as hell ain't releasing it or using it for anything." Aqua spared a glance at her blonde at his words. That was something he never opened up to her about; why he had a separate darkness locked inside his body. She had never pushed him though and he was thankful for her restraint.

"Hmmm. My apologies but I have no time to waste on such a minor squabble. You are coming with me and that is final." Faster than either of them could guess he could move, DiZ was in Naruto's face with a gloved hand on the boy's chest. A strong blast of black and purple energy sent him rocketing towards the portal at high speed and he yelled out angrily when he couldn't find a way to stop his flight.

"NO!" Aqua screamed in fear as the one person she had in the Realm of Darkness disappeared without a trace. She swung wide at the masked man but he ducked under the attack and jumped away. The bottom of his robes billowed as he landed next to the entrance/exit, his hand knocking away a surprisingly strong lightning spell as the master did her best to destroy this person who had stolen her one source of light in this hellish land. DiZ scoffed and fired another energy blast towards her to keep her occupied, which she dissipated with her glassy barrier. He had no use for a keyblade bearer with nothing but light residing within them. Although…due to his prior actions he could sense a bit of darkness creeping into the cracks of her heart. And maybe...no. He only needed the one who flowed with an overabundance of negative energy. She would overly complicate his revenge.

"This has been entertaining but I must bid you adieu. Take care, keyblade bearer." And then he was gone, leaving Aqua all by herself once again as her slim chance of escape faded away. She knew she was going in shock when Master Keeper slipped from her hands. She knew she was losing control when she dropped to her knees. And she knew that for the first time in a long time, she was by alone and by herself as the tears began to fall.

But also…somewhere underneath her fragile state she knew Naruto would keep his promise. A glint of metal at the water's edge where Naruto had disappeared somehow cut through her bleary eyes and caused her to stumble and pull herself towards it in saddened confusion. It was slim to none that this thing she was inching towards was some sort of clue to where Naruto had gone but that didn't stop her movements. Wiping at her eyes, her fingers curled around a damp blue cloth that caused her breath to hitch in her throat and give the woman a small bit of hope.

It was the blonde's ninja headband.

She knew that wherever he was, he would more than likely freak out upon discovering it was gone. He once told her how much it meant to him and how he had earned it (by learning a high level technique and defeating a traitor). And to her, it meant she still had a physical connection to him just like the wayfinders she created long ago still connected her to her friends. Gripping it to her chest, she let a few more tears fall before inhaling deeply and letting her sadness wash away like the tide.

He'd beat the crap out of that DiZ and find a way to free her, and meanwhile she would continue on in her journey to find a way to free herself. She wrapped the hitai-ate around her thigh and tightened it to make sure it wouldn't fall off and sat down to collect her thoughts. There was no way anything could get worse than they already were, right?

Wrong.

Shadow Heartless appeared in a large mass and began to assault the emotionally strained girl but they were no match for the superior fighter. Even in her current state of unrest. But as the last black mass was split asunder by her blade, a heavy pressure bore down on her and nearly dropped her to her knees. And the cause of it was currently walking on top of the ocean's surface towards her at a steady pace.

It was a spiky haired male with black hair and white clothes that reminded her of Naruto's somehow, though compared to hers they were in much better shape. The thing that really caused a shiver to slide down her spine was his eyes; red irises with strange black markings that spun around the pupil, but there was also a yellowish glow emanating from them like a mist. Not only that but a heavy purple-black fog was wafting off his body like steam, alerting her that the heavy destructive feeling she was sensing was coming directly from him. DiZ had been incorrect. Yes, Naruto held darkness within him but the masked bastard had mistaken him for this scary fellow.

"Where is he?"

"W-who?" she asked guardedly, holding her keyblade in front of her in the high chance he attacked. This 'day' was getting worse and worse. The boy sneered angrily and pulled out a straight sword from the sheathe she just now noticed was resting in his odd belt as his eyes sharpened dangerously at her.

"I sensed Naruto. I've been searching for him for a long time. You will tell me where he is. Now, woman!" His voice was cold. Indifferent. Deadly. And directed at her.

"He's not here anymore!"

"You're lying." And then he did something that completely caught her off guard. His sword covered itself in a dark reddish-black data signature that reminded Aqua of when Terra summoned his keyblade, which died down to reveal a surprising new look. There was now a circle guard formed around his hand and the handle that was the same blue and white coloring as the scabbard. At its end was a three-piece chain that looked like lightning bolts with a charm that was shaped like a white and red fan. Near the top of the sharpened blade now rested three black teeth in the shape of those tomoe in his eyes, sticking out of half of a red circle that poked out of the dull side of his sword.

He had a keyblade. He somehow turned his sword into a catalyst to summon his keyblade. But how? And when did he get it? Was this another pawn of Xehanort, left here after some sort of failure on his part? "I-I'm not lying." Her fingers tightened around the newly resummoned keyblade's handle, a bit of fear causing her arms to shake. This was nothing like any of the battles she had fought before.

"Then why do you have his headband? I can see his disgusting chakra covering it." She tried to steel her voice to respond without stuttering but he rushed at her with the intent to spear her through the chest. She used Master Keeper to parry the attack but the strength behind it nearly knocked her off of her feet. He slid back and continued staring at her as lightning crackled around his hand and the entirety of his weapon. For but a moment Aqua channeled her missing blonde companion, and lightly slapped her forehead.

"This is bullshit…"

"Tell me where he is!" he asked more impatiently.

"Why? Why do you want to see him so badly? And how do you know him!" she shouted back.

"He is my best friend and my brother. And I am going to kill him."

"Then I'm not telling you anything!"

"**Then you die as well!**" The darkness in his heart exploded as did the energy leaking out of his body. It erupted into a large vortex of negativity that shook the ground and split the air, finally causing Aqua to lose her footing and impact painfully against one of the rocky outcroppings that dotted the beach. His power was great, perhaps even greater than Xehanort's himself. And it gushed out of him like an open wound.

And she had to face him.

She gave an almost bitter chuckle as she did her best to release the light within her own body and heart, giving herself a barrier to control the amount of darkness that buffeted her form. '_I'm sorry, Naruto…but I don't think you'll be able to keep this promise._' One hand tapped the metal sheet attached to her leg and wished for the ninja to help give her strength. A small light appeared in the curl of the leaf etching and transferred to Master Keeper. As the soothing glow of the light enshrouded the weapon and her body, she knew her prayer had been answered. Just like when she faced Vanitus-Ventus and asked Terra and Ven for the power to fight back, Naruto was here in spirit to watch over her against this crazed person. Aqua grunted and hardened her resolve, her heartbeat surprisingly calm now in the face of such a malicious onslaught. Rising to her feet, the girl entered her fighting stance and faced down her adversary for perhaps the final time of her life.

She would show him the reason as to why she was granted the rank of Master.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_A/N: Yup. There ya go. I had this idea for awhile and finally got around to getting it down. Sadly, updates and such will probably slow down due to me starting classes this Monday. Bah…sadness._

_I hope it seemed good enough. I love the KH series and can't wait for Dream Drop Distance to be released in America. Axel's somehow back? Those kids from that Square Enix DS game I never played are in it? Mark of Mastery Exam? Riku and Sora and younger for whatever reason? And in THREEEEEEE-DEEEEEEE? God I hope it's good._

_So yeah, both Naruto and Sasuke have keyblades. Naruto=light. Sasuke=dark. But Naruto has darkness inside because of a reason I really hope you can guess. It was something small I noticed and decided to put in there-Ventus was wind, Aqua's water and Terra's earth. Then Sasuke's main element is Lightning and Naruto has a fiery personality that upholds the Will of Fire, ergo the 5 elements. I don't believe that will impact the story in any way but I thought I'd get that out there. And then Naruto was taken by DiZ. Uh oh. Aqua's left alone to fight a darkness-crazed Uchiha. Double uh oh._

_I like Aqua, and that's why I had some NarutoxAqua in there that didn't involve him going through BBS like I've seen some of the other stories do. But I was thinking of also having some NarutoxKairi or other relationships. Yes, Kairi and Sora really care for each other but I don't think they've ever said if it was love or super-strong friendship yet. I mean, you got a cute redhead in front of you in KH2 and instead you run over to a tall man in a black cloak that just so happens to be your best male friend stuck in another male's visage. AND you start crying about how you're so glad to see him again, leaving said redhead by herself? Something's up with that. But then again, Riku was missing longer and I just like redheads…_

_The KH canon of this story begins next chapter in Chain of Memories. While that's taking place, so will parts of 358/2 Days with some new Organization members since I set it up that way. They'll be up to XVI for a bit until Axel starts to clean house. A minor side note, it was really hard to come up with good names that used all of their letters plus an 'X'…and even then I still think they suck. Ah well._

_Later._


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Nope for Naruto or Kingdom Hearts. Just nope. I don't think I would have been able to make KH as memorable, and Naruto would have probably ended already.

Chapter 2:

He had done it.

Particles of light floated away in the everlasting darkness as he released the weapon back to its limbo. It had taken so long to summon the keyblade but the conditioning had finally come to pass. What troubled him wasn't the act of manipulating the light within his own heart…oh no. It was the sitting around and meditating to _try _and control it. But that part was finally over!

Thank the heavens.

It started out simple. His ever present companion had instructed him on looking deep inside himself and feeling for the shining light that he possessed. It took him many long and barren days (at least he thought so), doing his best not to fall back into touching his chakra and tenketsu points and accidently controlling that familiar energy. But in that one final time of deep meditation, scouring his mindscape for any possible route to his heart, he finally found the cause of his problem that kept him from succeeding.

The damn fox was smothering the brightness with its own blackened shadows.

Doing his best to draw upon the light within, he batted away the darkness coating his mindscape's walls and immediately had to shield his eyes while crying out in shock as the chakra he had been supplying to his feet suddenly cut off. The second problem he encountered was when instead of touching the ground underneath the sewer water he just kept on falling. Falling, as in everything was suddenly an ocean and the blond was sinking like a boulder. The oddest thing he noticed (despite falling upside down at an incredible rate) was that he could still breathe beneath the waves even as the liquid encompassed and parted around him in his travel.

'_What's that?_' It was rather dark, even here in the deep depths, but he could see something solid rapidly approaching. '_O-oh crap! I'm gonna crash!_' Arms flung out in protest as Naruto's body slowly spun in place and diminished in speed until he barely floated above the floor. The jinchuriki was unsure how that had happened but the miracle was very welcome at such a time. The tips of his sandals ghosted over the blackened sand before finally tapping down, allowing him to regain his balance and look around in curious wonder.

The area exploded at once into a sea of white as the floor erupted into a countless number of pale doves, spiraling outwards as the 'water' instantly disappeared like it was never there in the first place. Underneath his soles now stood a beautiful glass mosaic circle that, surprisingly, had a large full body portrait of the blue-haired keyblade master with her eyes closed, one arm in front of her face as she held Master Keeper in an upside-down grip. Opposite of her was the upside-down figure of himself, looking longingly at his empty hand while a thin white line ran between the two. Ringing the new platform was a multitude of circles that contained both the Konoha crest and red swirl he was familiar with. There were also a black outline of trees and flames, and a large inscription of IX situated near the bottom. He didn't know what it stood for but it must have had some purpose, just like how everything else on there seemed to.

Naruto slowly stepped forward and looked over the edge of the dais before gulping and backing away. He couldn't see any bottom and the darkness seemed to stretch on forever. He was betting that unlike the first time, there would be no fancy floating/flying to save his skin if he fell. But that left him being stranded on this platform with no way off!

_To think you have finally made it this far…congratulations are in order._

Who was that?

_But just because you have discovered this inner realm, do you truly believe you can handle the power bestowed upon you?_

Naruto felt his lip curl at the question. Aqua believed in him and if the bluenette did then obviously he had the potential. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't know I could!" It was quiet, the only sound being Naruto's breaths in the cool air before the mysterious voice finally decided to answer back.

_Good answer. Faith in yourself is a wonderful commodity but the real question is…do you __**truly**__ believe you can wield it for yourself without consequence?_

In response a large blob of shadow bubbled up from between the glass tiles and slowly coalesced into a massive black armored quadruped whose limbs weren't even attached to the body. The helmeted face was obscured by a full piece of grey metal with a cross in the middle. Pure darkness was dripping from its lithe body and it shook like a dog, spraying the droplets everywhere before centering its view on Naruto and tensing. He had only a few seconds of downtime before the attack began and forced him to jump straight skyward.

Steel claws clicked against the floor as the creature slid to a stop and spun around, waiting for the floating blond to drop back to the ground. In the air, Naruto formed the seal for the kage bunshin and called out the name while trying to create at least ten copies but there was no smoke or drain on his chakra in response. He tried again as gravity took its course and dragged him downward but yet again nothing happened. He yelped and backpedaled as a swipe nearly took his head off, wondering why the hell he couldn't use his chakra.

In response the ninja pulled out a kunai and a handful of shuriken (idly realizing that he had some here. All were lost back in the real world), flinging the throwing stars with pinpoint precision. However, the blades all bounced off the armored skull and did nothing to deter the attack when one of them became stuck in the mask's slit. Utilizing his speed the shinobi continued to dodge and chip away at the enemy with his strength and kunai knife but nothing seemed to be injuring it. What could he do to kill this stupid thing?

A bolt of blazing darkness nearly scalped him, giving him a silent reply.

Wait…that's right. This 'thing' looked like a Heartless and the easiest way to kill those monsters was to use its polar opposite on the elemental spectrum. The question was…could he use the light to win? Thoughts of all the good times in his life began cycling through his mind as he flipped the blade around and held it like a sword. Focusing the intent upon the metal weapon, he noticed the steel begin to sheen slightly as if a weak light source was shining upon it from somewhere on high. Bolstered by the positive attempt the teenager continued to focus as much of the warm feeling into the kunai as he could. The glow intensified to the point where it looked as though the edges had extended at least an inch farther and could have passed as a short sword with a whitish aura surrounding it.

Perfect.

**CLANG**

Muscles tensed as Naruto struggled to fully repel the heavy paw that tried to strike him while he was engrossed in using his new 'technique'. With a roar he was able to throw it off followed by a slash of the kunai that caused the beast to cry out; Naruto had just taken out a small chunk of its foreleg with the attack. He could actually hurt the damn thing now! With growing confidence, the shinobi/keyblade apprentice knew it was time to end things.

"How'd you like that, huh?" the boy shouted before stopping in confusion. The Heartless had widened its stance and dug in its nails while standing near the edge of the platform. The facemask had snapped apart and particles of darkness were being drawn into the hollow portion from the surrounding atmosphere. The black ball of energy continued to grow as Naruto snapped out of his daze and rushed forward, intent on doing…something before the Heartless finished whatever it was doing. He knew it was not going to be pretty though.

The sphere expanded until it was as large as the creature itself before shrinking and compressing at an alarming rate. The ball was sucked straight into the empty helmet before the covering clicked shut and the 'body' of the beast distended like an overfilled water balloon. Steam angrily hissed out of its armored ports before the creature of darkness shook uncontrollably and finally released its payload.

The beam was released with a laser-like focus, tearing through space like the unstoppable force it was. All that could be heard was a high-pitched whine as the nearby air was immediately displaced. The blast continued on for at least fifteen seconds before finally cutting off from lack of energy and the Heartless twitched before dropping to its knees in exhaustion. Given some time it would recover and it would be back to normal. There was no need though…the jinchuriki was nowhere in sight. The platform was missing a major chunk of its ground, carved away from the attack like a hot knife through butter. If Naruto hadn't been pushed over into the blackness of the pit, then he had been disintegrated from the pure destructive force.

"Holy shit…fucking…god…damn hell!...what the hell was that!" Grunting could be heard as the Heartless raised its head ever so slightly to look around. Where was it coming from? Seconds passed before more struggling could be heard and a lone kunai appeared from the side of the irreparable platform and clattered into a spin. The bladed weapon finally stopped as a trembling hand followed up from the place where the kunai had appeared and struggled to find a handhold on the perfectly sanded surface. When said fingers flicked against steel they immediately grabbed it and drove the point into the floor. With a mighty heave a dirty, bruised, and panting Uzumaki Naruto pulled himself back onto the dais with a mighty grunt and flopped onto his back. The second kunai in his right hand still flickered dimly with the remnants of light, even as the blond continued to take in as much oxygen as he physically could.

'_What type of attack was that? It was insane! I would've been killed if I hadn't taken the chance and just jumped off the damn platform!_' The ninja was lucky that his kunai were tempered enough in strength to allow him to stab them into the 'rock' and stop his descent. Not having chakra sucked, but at least it was only in this place…he hoped. The fall wrenched his arms though. His damn joints were still aching.

The Heartless growled at the sight of its prey still being alive and kicking, struggling to rise to its feet and finish the job that its own energy blast surprisingly failed to do. Naruto slowly moved to do the same and tightened his grip on his weapon, the light blazing to life again as he stumbled over to finally stop the monster. Both were still recovering from the last attack and whichever was the first to recover would be the victor.

The Heartless had nearly gotten back onto its feet when the light kunai was stabbed into its front shin and dropped it right back to the ground. The large, blank mask that composed its face tried to headbutt the much smaller boy away but Naruto had enough pluck left in him to jump and grab onto the back of the helmet. "Hold still!" But the creature born of darkness wouldn't listen to the ninja's demands, continuing to shake its body while trying to remove the gnat from its perch.

"I said…quit it, you bastard!" With a mighty heave Naruto forced the shining blade into the junction where the neck met the head and not one second later a shockwave exploded outwards. The force shattered the kunai and sent him dropping back towards the ground with a grunt. The Heartless let loose what sounded like a death rattle before its whole form began to sway and literally melt before the now prone boy's eyes. He had hit the destroyed platform with a heavy thud, but the mild pain didn't even register as he watched blackish-purple sludge from the dying armor's body fall into a shadowed puddle. The Heartless was soon no more, nothing major left of it except the small pond of darkness that was evaporating and quickly growing smaller and smaller.

But…it was over.

Or so he thought.

A swirling vortex of sinister energy zapped into existence underneath his body and Naruto felt himself starting to sink again. God, why couldn't this just be over already? He just wanted his keyblade! Aqua never mentioned he would have to go through _all of this_ just to obtain the darn thing. No one (Aqua) ever said he'd have to face down a Heartless inside his own heart and face down an energy blast that would easily level any of the major hidden villages! He struggled to pull himself free from its inky tendrils as the mysterious voice once again made itself known.

_Darkness will always be a constant in your life…but don't be afraid –_

Afraid? He wasn't afraid…was he?

No. He wasn't scared. At this point in his life he had grown more apathetic than fearful over life-or-death situations. In fact, this portal underneath him was currently more annoying than terrifying. The blond…_would_ free himself and unlock the key in his heart in the process. He needed its power for the sake of defending himself and any others, should the duo ever somehow run across fellow stragglers within the Realm of Darkness. And that…was what truly made him afraid. He didn't want to lose anyone else like all those poor souls back in his former home. And he really didn't want to lose…

Aqua.

His mentor and friend in this place. And one that was always forced to protect him in this place due to his inability to barely even kill the smallest of Heartless with his own innate powers. But no more. _He_ would return the favor tenfold!

_-you hold within yourself the mightiest weapon of all._

His efforts were futile as the darkness coursed over his body like ocean waves, even as his resolve never waivered. It was just like being surrounded by Gaara's sand, that's all. At least this was nice and cool feeling instead of dry and grainy. Soon all that remained above the surface was one outstretched hand and enough of his face to continue letting him draw breath. Oh, he could really use a miracle…was this Kyuubi's darkness again? Despite the fact the bluenette mentioned his own heart radiated nothing but light he felt as though there was a hidden shadow staining his soul that kept itself separate yet entwined with the demon fox's. Could this be that stigma trying to become dominate and snuff him out when he was at his weakest?

_So don't forget: your hearts are always connected. No matter the distance, you are never truly alone._

…**SHEEN!**

A light of the softest and purest gold peeked through the tiny gaps in the net of shadows before the blackened mass moved as if it were scalded by flames. The gaps grew wider and wider all that remained was nothing but a pillar of radiance that extended perpetually into the sky. The platform seemed to reverse all the damage it sustained as the beautiful portrait from before sprang once again into reality. Even with no Naruto in sight, the beam began to diminish and grow narrower until it too faded and left the spot. Nothing seemed out of place, as though an epic battle had not been fought there not a few minutes prior, except for one minor detail on the stain-glassed picture;

In his hands…Naruto now held a keyblade in his formerly empty grip.

Back in the real world the shinobi was forcefully removed from his mind. With a gasp, bright blue eyes snapped open with dilated pupils as he jumped to his feet. "I've got it." he uttered lowly. This was it right? The grand moment where all his hard work culminated together into one big point and celebrations would soon abound. The Realm of Darkness wasn't exactly a hot spot for parties but he figured he'd think of something later.

After all, Uzumaki Naruto was finally going to call upon his own personal keyblade.

"Oi, Aqua-sensei! I think I've figured it out!" Said blue-haired woman looked up from her spot a few yards away where she had silently been watching the surroundings and a flicker of interest appeared on her features. Brushing the dirt from her stockings she stood and walked over towards the blond-haired 'apprentice' with her gloved hands on her hips.

"Are you sure? You've already said that before and each time was a bust."

"Yeah, but _this _time I know it for certain. Okay…check this out." The ninja spread his arms wide and focused, embracing and offering the light within his heart a chance to assist him. A bright glow immediately sprang forth from his chest, the noise ringing out into the hollow sky before Naruto reached forward as if to grab something. Fingers curled inward towards his palm as the light traveled across his torso, down his limb, and into his waiting hand. It expanded in a corkscrew fashion with small embers strewn sporadically throughout, until it all finally hardened into the special metal that could never be found naturally in any of the different realms. The summoning was complete-

-and damn, it was cool looking…but sorta gaudy. Wait, in that sense it fit him perfectly. He always had to catch everyone's attention, did he not? It had a long, thin shaft colored dark grey. Yellow teeth curved into a circle shaped like the sun with small triangle protrusions from the top end. The handle was fashioned like a kunai (white tape with black ring at the end) and sported a rounded orange guard with a lighter orange inlay closer to the center. The chain was yellow and actually in the shape of normal interlocked metal rings with a red spiral finishing it off as the keychain.

It was his very. Own. Keyblade.

…AWESOME!

The ninja gave it a few test swings and was slightly shocked by the weight. Less than Master Keeper but the tip was point-heavy. He could swipe it around quickly and yet it still felt balanced in his hands despite the weighted point. _Ashes to Ashes_…it was that voice again. So that's how they got their names, huh? The newest keyblade wielder figured it was just something the user came up with depending on what shape the key took. Now he knew better.

"Ashes to Ashes, eh?...I like it." The mass of light and cinders once again ensorcelled his hand as the keyblade disappeared in a flash. Elation coursed through his veins as the last ember of summoned fire winked out of existence and he pumped his fist in triumph. That turned into thrusting it into the air and jumping happily, shouting about how he had truly accomplished what he had set out to do and the time and energy he had placed in his training.

All in all, he really just yelled out two short sentences.

"WAHOO! I AM THE FRICKIN' MAN!"

"You, you did it! You actually did it Naruto!" With hands clasped together in front of her mouth, Aqua watched as the blond continued to celebrate. She felt pride in knowing that her _very first time_ teaching someone as a master, it had been a success. This boy, no…man, someone who was once completely unaware of the inner power and machinations of the heart, Naruto had taken to her teachings with only minor difficulty in the beginning. And now…the pretty bluenette couldn't keep the smile off her face.

"So cool!" With a laugh Naruto rushed forward and grabbed Aqua about the waist and spun her around in elation. The girl struggled and shrieked in mock terror at the sudden action.

"Naruto, let go!" His response was to shake his head and lift her higher. She couldn't help but laugh along as their moment eventually slowed down and the master found herself winding her arms around the blond's neck to steady herself. Their intermingled bodies gave off a heat that helped to offset the perpetual cold of the dark realm and Aqua found herself snuggling a little closer, surprising even herself at how..._not_ embarrassing the act seemed.

The jinchuriki inhaled and accidently took a whiff of the female's scent as the excitement began to die down. Fresh rain with a hint of vanilla…he truly wondered how she was able to secrete such a unique aroma here in this world without any form of deodorant or perfume to be seen. It was then, with his heart growing from its normal tempo into something quicker, that the male found himself growing bold enough thanks to the tenderness of the moment.

More so daring than painting the Hokage Monument in broad daylight or facing down a maniacal monster made of nothing more than bloody sand and unrestrained youki. Hell, he had even fought against all three of the _sannin_ in some way which anyone would say had to be one of the stupidest things imaginable. Tsunade in Tanzaku Gai, Orochimaru on multiple annoying occasions, and with Jiraiya…it was more a spar than battle but the old toad bastard never held back unless it looked like Naruto was going to die.

…so technically he held back a lot, but the essence of the statement was the same. Naruto was talented enough now anyways because Jiraiya didn't pull his punches and baby the blond during training. They may not have had much time to do so due to darkness engulfing the Elemental Nations, but hey the sannin was still able do his job somewhat.

The ninja pulled back his upper body slightly and trailed a hand upwards to gently cup her chin, eliciting a soft gasp from Aqua as his fingers found purchase. The quiet intake of breath was soon followed by a widening of her bright blue eyes as he fully filled her vision and his lips were suddenly upon hers. The keyblade wielder was dumbstruck. The kiss was timid and tentative, with Naruto conveying his thanks by something more than just simply words.

The boy couldn't help his action though; Aqua had shown him such positivity and kindness in their limbo together and things like that stick with you over time. It wasn't like others had never given him praise before, but the blue-haired woman exuded a confident and secure aura that caused Naruto to feel as though he never wanted to disappoint her. It would have been a lie to say he didn't have a crush on her (obviously it had already passed that level of affection) and memories of chasing after a pink-haired, violent teammate no longer gave him a warm, fuzzy feeling like Aqua now did since it may have literally been years since they spoke or interacted and…and…

…wow her lips were soft…

Naruto expressly wished that this had been his _first _kiss before that damned incident in the academy.

Beneath his hands he felt the young woman jerk lightly and stiffen at the compulsive contact before her eyes finally drifted shut. The blond was happy that as the shock wore off she pulled him as close as she could and kissed back with fervor. Who knew Aqua had it in her? Her fingers fisted his hair as his own grasped her hip and waist, Naruto actually having to lower the magic-user to the ground at one point as the bluenette seemed to throw all of her weight onto him.

Over time their touches became needy and lips traveled elsewhere as hidden desires finally breached the surface with a bang. It was as if…their hearts were growing brighter as the two surrounded themselves with a basic and instinctual need for reassurance and affection. Sadly, the massive source of light would attract the Heartless like flies and begrudgingly the two broke apart, panting from their impromptu make-out and rush of hormones.

"This…is crazy…*huff*"

"It is, isn't it…?"

"I've…things like this…never interested me…"

Naruto swallowed and gave her a slightly saddened smile. "I've never actually had much luck myself. First I just wanted to show how grateful I was but…sorry, I guess I lost control." A blush quickly adorned Aqua's cheeks as she realized one hand had a death grip still on Naruto's chest and jacket while the other was still around his head. He lost control…because of her? She didn't know whether or not to feel even more embarrassed or simply pleased that she could have that effect on him.

"Don't worry about it." A fringe of cerulean was brushed away from her eyes as the female now realized she was atop her 'student' while the two lay upon the onyx grass just off of the dark grey path. Aqua bit her lip shyly and looked down to hide her face with her hair, the red upon her features intensifying as he felt her tremble slightly. It was a near whisper and Naruto struggled to hear her plea, even with his shinobi-enhanced features. "…keep going, please…"

This time it was the jinchuriki's turn to quiver, but with excitement or nervousness it was unknown. "A-alright." He sat them both up as the duo once again became entranced with the other person in their embrace. The tempo increased as once again they became bolder and bolder and the girl mumbled something about a barrier but Naruto didn't want to let go again.

In the next few seconds it didn't matter anymore.

Against his lips and body, Naruto felt Aqua shudder as something warm and bitter bubbled out from behind his teeth. Then the pain struck, ironically, like a bolt of lightning. He removed himself with a wet gasp and saw the bluenette with a horrified look of disbelief that seemed to disfigure her facial structure as she looked down at the whole _hand_ that now protruded from between her breasts, the occasional spark of electricity still zapping off the fingers. A trickle of blood snaked its way out of her mouth as she coughed, mirroring the ever increasing ooze that now stained her clothes a dark violet-red. Than attack had gone clear through her to strike Naruto and pierce his torso and knick his heart, already cauterizing the blood vessels and muscle inside.

Kyuubi would heal him just like always…but not even an intense Curaga spell would repair Aqua's traumatic injury.

As his own wounded organ did its best to continue pumping, skepticism at the fact his happiness was once again fleeting caused Naruto to grow angry. **Very angry**. Malevolent chakra flooded the wound and his energy coils as the boy barely realized that this situation mirrored the very mission that gave Naruto his nindo. Both involved someone new to the blond that very quickly became a precious person, dying way too early after making an impact on his life because of a very violent technique.

This time though…Naruto had the ability to take some matter of revenge against the one that did so.

Behind Aqua's slumped body he could make out a shadowed silhouette with terribly familiar red and black eyes tinted with a sickly yellow sheen. Eyes he wanted to rip painfully from their sockets but the slowly spinning orbs seemed to paralyze him in his spot. The shinobi couldn't break free or call on any form of power, either chakra, youki, or even keyblade as his wound continued to throb as the person ripped their hand free from its meaty prison. Before the bluenette's body even hit the ground, lightning encased the bloodied hand once again and grew in power as the energy became tainted and dark.

Naruto roared in anger as the distorted noise of chirping birds filled the air and swept across the ground, ripping free chunks of black earth as it grew in strength. The last thing the blond saw before his vision faded to nothing was his teacher's unmoving body and an electricity-charged spear hand aiming straight for his brow.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Blue eyes snapped open in unrestrained shock as he shouted out wildly, the surroundings slowly coming back into focus as Naruto recovered from the impromptu sleep he had fallen into. Heart beating a rapid staccato against his ribcage, the boy sighed appreciatively upon realizing it had only been in his mind…terrible nightmare, but still all in his mind. He went to rub a hand over his sweating face but chains jangled just out of view as a force kept said limb from moving less than a few inches.

Oh…right…he was crucified to some dingy, underground wall in a basement room that was in need of some _serious _illumination. Turn on the damn lights for once, or put on some candles. Candles! Soft light! Cripes! Was it too much to ask? Well…there was a tiny little bit of brightness reaching his eyes as he hung there. A large number of different shaped screens were glowing from across the way, over on the other side of the room. The blond could hear the steady clack of fingers typing in the silence thanks to the lone other figure seated in front of said monitors.

A person he currently wanted to beat the ever-loving shit out of, before doing it all over again just to make sure it was thorough.

"Pleasant dreams?" DiZ asked pleasantly, a smattering of humor lacing his question. Naruto growled heavily and struggled against his bonds, utterly wishing his hands weren't completely encased within a metal shell. His headband was missing (which originally caused him to go into super panic mode) and that also meant the lockpick and razor he kept tucked between the metal plate and cloth. He still had the ones in his item pouch and a last resort pick he learned to keep hidden up against his molars thanks to Jiraiya, but DiZ never left the goddamned room to allow him time to break free. Or at least, he did but only when Naruto wasn't aware.

"…only in the beginning." he replied darkly. "Then it turned into something that's more like _none of your damn business_!"

The older man merely chuckled.

"I see. A pity, as I must admit you've done nothing but pique my curiosity since we've met. In the beginning of your slumber the amount of light you began producing was astounding but sadly I do not care about that. But…" the man finally stopped and spun his seat around, tilting his head forward and steepling his gloved fingers together. "But soon after the darkness that hides within you began to swell and grow at an astounding rate." The way the glow behind his head lengthened the shadows on his body and face made his appearance seem all that more ghastly, a dark perversion that made his words seem all the more menacing.

"Yeah? Well how about you let me go and then we'll see exactly what I can do."

"Tempting." He leaned back as his hands dropped to rest on his knees. "But I am afraid I cannot do that."

Naruto merely gave him a deadpan glare. "Wow. Didn't see that coming." He finished in monotone. "So anyways, I'm freaking starving. Go get me some food."

"A prisoner does not give demands to their warden. But you _were_ within the Realm of Darkness for an indiscernible amount of time…so it is anyone's guess when the last time you truly ate was." DiZ sighed and sat up, slowly rising to his feet and pushing the chair in with enough force to allow it to lightly coast up against the desk.

"I want ramen."

"I do believe a sandwich is good enough for you. Or perhaps we can even go the traditional route of gruel and bread." he smirked, starting his way towards the far door hidden by the dark atmosphere. The keyblade user grunted and smacked the back of his head against the wall. Then he did it again, growing tired of DiZ's lame attempts at humor. They weren't funny and Naruto knew for a fact it was to infuriate him.

"Okay, I get it. I'm a captive. Har-dee-harr. At least give me a cell with a toilet and one of those silly black and white striped uniforms. Gotta make it official!" His yelled echoed across the expanse and out into the hall before snapping off abruptly as the man closed the door. God, the bastard thought way too highly of himself. Or thought himself better than the blond. Either way he deserved a righteous ass-kicking before Naruto _persuaded_ him to do whatever he could to help Aqua escape her own dark prison. But that was in this the future. In the now, he had to free himself.

Using his tongue the boy was able to dislodge the small metal pin from its spot between his gums and inner lining of his cheek. Holding it between his lips, he forced his leg up as far as his flexibility would allow and grasped the end with his exposed toes before taking a few tries to jam it into one of the cuff's locks. A bead of sweat rolled down his exposed forehead as the tumblers clicked and clicked until finally, the loosening of his shackles was like a godsend. The rest of the irons quickly fell to his lockpicking and Naruto found himself rubbing his wrists to try and relieve some of the pressure.

A clone was quickly made and stuffed back into the restraints as he silently took to the ceiling. He'd have liked to summon his keyblade, but DiZ seemed to have an acute sense towards feeling brightness and shadow within a person. Instead of creating a beacon to show something was amiss the blond instead flexed his hands and waited. He'd have to find a person to craft him some new metal weapons…they were all lost in the transition from between realms and it pissed him off.

A few wisps of darkness inconspicuously rose from his shoulders and a pain blossomed in Naruto's chest, right around his heart. Suddenly panting at the horrible sensation, a hand clenched against his worn jacket and the chest hidden away underneath. That had been happening on and off for awhile now…ever since…ever since the masked asshole had sent him careening through that portal of darkness. Aqua had warned him about passing through without any protection; was his pain the cause of not having functioning armor?

With sheer force of will he crushed the negative energy and did his best to even out his breathing. It wasn't a moment too soon because the lone door attached to the dark room opened and in walked his jailor holding a rather bland-looking sandwich. Unknown to the man, another pair of bright blue eyes were stalking him from the darkened ceiling like an animal ready to pounce. The copy did its best to groan and complain but it did the trick; Diz and his smarmy attitude were caught unawares as the real Naruto dropped down behind him and proceeded to shove him bodily into the wall.

DiZ didn't know what hit him. Once second he was lazily waving the sandwich around when suddenly a freight train slammed into his spine and forced him directly into the shackled blond. Said person vanished in a puff of smoke before his own body rag-dolled and he was spun awkwardly and slammed into the metal restraints again. This time his own hands were captured and as his vision swam, the older gentleman was able to see Naruto standing there smugly with his hands on his hips.

"Oh look. I escaped…how 'bout that?"

"H-how?"

Naruto merely slid into DiZ's unoccupied chair and grinned at the still disoriented man. "A ninja has his ways. Now you and I are going to have a nice little chat about things." At this the blond's mood dropped significantly and began cracking the knuckles of his hands. "You're gonna tell me how to get back to the Realm of Darkness so I can get my friend out of there."

"That's…not a very light-sided action, is it not?" DiZ asked with a cough, some semblance of his old smirk returning to his covered features. "Would you really torture someone just to save another?"

"Yes." came the reply without a doubt, causing the new captive's eye to widen slightly. "My people had a whole division to torture and interrogation. We did what we had to do." What Naruto failed to mention was that behind his bravado, he was still a complete rookie in the whole anguish-giving situation. Sure, he annoyed the ever-loving hell out of people with his pranks and that could have been considered 'torture' but he had never been a part of Ibiki or Anko's profession.

The blond knew if you didn't willing go there, you were completely screwed.

"I do not understand how a child such as you can be filled with terrifying darkness and yet still it doesn't touch your heart."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm amazingly pure. Big whoop. And I'm not a damn _kid_!" he growled. "Not anymore. Now quit stalling and tell me the easiest way to get back there!"

"Easiest? You merely need to open a Corridor of Darkness and hop right in. Do take care of yourself though; after all, the consequences can be most severe if you pass through unprepared." A twinge of pain echoed through the jinchuriki's chest at the warning. That annoying smirk had reappeared on DiZ's face too. "Would you be willing to place your friend in such moral danger? I failed to see any protection on either of you back during our brief altercation in the Dark Realm. It's a…miracle…that you weren't corrupted yourself."

"Then tell me another way to get there, dammit! I don't have time for this!"

"There are none that you would consider 'quick'. Oh well."

Naruto quickly raised his fist and slammed it against the nearby monitor, smashing the glass and sending sparks and shards everywhere. The look in his blue eyes had turned icy and there looked to be a reddish tint in the color. "Enough! You're pissing me off and it's not helping your own problems." Shaking his hand to rid himself of the lingering debris, the blond growled lightly and abruptly stood up. "Screw this. I'm going to take a look around."

"And leave me trapped here? Such a terrible thing to do to your elder."

"You didn't seem to have a problem leaving me up there for…however long. Besides, who said I wasn't leaving someone to watch you?" A quick application of his chakra produced a clone that took to sitting in the plush computer chair. Naruto immediately left, flipping DiZ the bird before slipping out the doorway and slamming it. The kage bunshin just grinned placidly and shook his head at the tongue-tied darkness wielder.

"It's not smart to make the Boss angry."

"What are you?"

"One of a kind." The clone spun slightly to look at the mass of screens resting in front of it (as well as the still sputtering destroyed one) and hummed, cocking its head to the side in question. "Well…since you're a douche and won't help us willingly…I'm just gonna take a look at this thingy okay?" Without waiting for a response the chakra construct cracked its fingers in an exaggerated motion and began pressing button after button the keyboard. DiZ shouted out but it did nothing to halt the ninja's motions. Hell, the clone kept at it just to spite him.

"Stop that you fool!"

If anything, that just sped up the doppelganger's fingers.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

How odd. Originally, the male had come upon a fork in the hallway and so took a chance with taking the left path. After ascending a flight of stairs the true Naruto found himself walking into a large library covered in dust and disuse. Beyond that he found a blindingly white room that actually looked to be taken care of, and then lastly a dining room that was in serious need of a dusting. There were other rooms but they all appeared locked or completely empty so the ninja just ignored them outright. DiZ probably lived downstairs in that dark place…which he felt was a complete waste of a nice house. Hell, he'd have loved a place like this back in Konoha.

Stepping out into the main foyer, Naruto finally walked out the large ornate door to see that the house was actually some sort of mansion surrounded by a forest. It contained colorful glass windows and spired, pointed towers with a large stone fence and metal gate. With the cool breeze caressing his skin and the purplish-red, cloudy sky above that seemed on the edge of falling into twilight, the blond took a moment to just silently breath in and relax.

He had missed this.

Perpetual calm in the Realm of Darkness followed by being locked in a 'dungeon' for however long had really messed with Naruto's perception. In fact, when he had moved out of DiZ's computer room and stepped into the light his eyes had nearly overloaded from the actual brightness caused by the sun and he had to shield the retinas from harm. And now with the sounds of nature in his ear and the realization that, indeed, he was back in the real world…Naruto nearly broke down in tears. It had been so long. So long…

He wondered how Aqua would react when she was removed from her black purgatory and brought here? Maybe after he smacked his former jailer around and punted him out of the mansion, he would be able to become the place's new tenant? It was too nice (despite being rundown) to be left to decay. Squatter's rights and all that. Maybe his girlfriend/teacher/friend/whatever she really was would want to live here. From what he remembered from the past she told him, her own world was also lost to darkness but it was not truly gone. She had transformed it into a rather unlivable place that toyed with people's memories thanks to the power of her master status to protect the body of one of her former friends…but he wanted to show off Konoha too…gah, decisions! Maybe it could just be a vacation home or something?

Naruto shook his head snappishly while wiping away the wetness in his eyes. He was thinking too far ahead at this point. First he had to spring her and find a way to bring the Elemental Nations back into the light. A forlorn sigh escaped his lips as the muscles in his shoulders drooped. This Uzumaki was never going to have an easy life…

Off in the distance the shinobi heard the faint sounds of civilization and it caused his ears to perk up remarkably. There was no time to be sad; perhaps he could find something useful? That thought alone got him to easily jump the iron gate and head off into the trees. Why waste time wondering when he could just track the noises and sprint over there? Simple. And so, that's exactly what he did. An orangish blur sped through a clearing in the forest, darkened by the canopy of overhanging leaves. What he wasn't expecting was the end of the opening to end abruptly with yet another brick wall.

Guess he found the nearby society.

A man-made hole was knocked into the pale grey brick and beyond that something that caused Naruto to pinch himself in worry. Yup. It was painful. He wasn't dreaming. There were other living, breathing, non-imaginary people walking around. It must have been a shopping district seeing as the people were fluttering about from shop stall to shop stall. It was really a sight for sore eyes. Naruto was unable to keep the disbelieving laugh from escaping his lips as he trudged forward into the throng.

He heard talk of potions and munny, forcing Naruto to pause and look in on the transaction between the young woman running the stall and the person making the purchase. The potions weren't that new thanks to Aqua's lessons on how he was now a keyblade wielder and that meant 'protecting the sanctity of all the worlds and knowing the similarities between them'. There had been healing salves in his own home and yet they looked nothing like the glowing blue jar with a green star tucked within…odd. Maybe they changed shape to blend in with the ninja lifestyle? Who knows.

And then there was the oddest thing; munny. No, not _money _as one would call currency. His homeland used ryou, small gold coins or even paper bills. But his blue-haired mentor had explained that munny was acceptable nearly anywhere even though she had none on her at the time and left it to description. They were orange, palm-sized three-dimensional diamonds that came in increments of one, five, and twenty depending on their size. How the hell these things let you buy stuff…the shinobi had no clue.

It was at this point Naruto realized he had ventured closer to the shop than he originally meant to. His body had just moved on its own as he tried to get a better look at the small diamonds now resting on the wooden counter. His actions gained the attention of the two already there and both turned to look at the newest person to walk over to the item shop.

The cashier held an amused expression upon her face, tucking some of her long brown hair behind her ear as she watched the blond stare curiously their way. She thought he was looking at her customer and it nearly made her giggle when she came to that conclusion. When she noticed the boy realized what he was doing, he immediately stiffened with a red face of embarrassment and gave a rather weak grin. Oh, that was so adorable! The male must have been new around there and came across something he fancied. And she had a feeling she knew what it was…

Blue eyes met red when the last person in the situation turned his way to see what was going on. At first Naruto wasn't exactly sure of the gender of the person due to their clothing but one look at the soft face and he knew she was a female, possibly around his original age of fourteen. Her hair was down to her chin and fanned out, silverish-white in color and the bangs were parted and swept to completely cover her left eye. Her dark blue jacket with a large zipper and pockets was rather baggy and hid the body underneath, the ends of the sleeves nearly engulfing the tips of her fingers. Her lower half was clad in a pair of tan capris and her feet were covered in a set of blue slip-on shoes. The potion was hugged to her stomach and her visible red iris seemed…hostile despite her features remained passive.

"Uh…hi?" Being trapped in a territory of darkness must have really addled his brain because for once in his life Naruto was at a loss for words. Perhaps it was because of the close proximity to things that _weren't_ actually Heartless, but the bemused/stoic glares he was receiving had tied up his tongue. The younger girl immediately turned on her heel and began to walk away, causing Naruto to scratch at his cheek in confusion. That was a bit odd.

"You know, hon…you'll have to be a bit smoother the next time you try and hit on a girl. Especially one like Fuu."

"What? I wasn't trying to-no, I just…aw…" The jinchuriki slumped in his spot, arms dangling at his sides as he tried to process what just happened. Did it really seem like he was attempting to pick her up? How in the hell did that happen? With a great sigh, the male stood back up and slowly shook his head to try and explain himself. "That's not what I was trying to do! I'm just new around here and was looking around. Speaking of which; what's this place called?"

"You really don't know? This here's Twilight Town."

"Huh…never heard of it."

She looked at him strangely but let that comment slip. There were all kinds of odd people around and the shopkeeper had gotten used to seeing eccentricities in her customers. Oh well, she had never seen him around before either so his comment on being a newcomer didn't seem all that farfetched. His clothes were rather worn and faded, only adding to the mystery. "I see. It wouldn't hurt to take a look around then." Naruto only laughed and rubbed his neck, nodding at the woman's suggestion. Quickly saying goodbye to her, the woman watched as he walked into the crowd that continuously moved in front of her shop before realizing he had completely disappeared from view. It was rather amazing seeing as he had bright blond hair and orange clothing that would have stood out amongst the throng.

Strange. It was like he was one of those ninjas she saw in movies.

Time passed somewhat as Naruto continued scouting the area before feeling as though he should return back to, blech, DiZ. Perhaps his clone had discovered something in his absence? No memories had been retrieved so the blond had to guess it was still alive. Now that he knew the basic layout of the place, he felt like it would be easier to disappear if things got out of hand. Nothing bad could possibly happen in this moment.

Just then, as if to spite him, an explosion sounded off in the distance.

Really now?

From what he could tell, the blast came from the direction of the Old Mansion. Plus there was the intrusion of memories that involved black fire ripping at his clone's body. That's _just_ what he needed now. Ignoring the panicked crowds rushing about him, Naruto began pushing through the swarm of people before finally growling in frustration and taking to the rooftops. Mass panic was always a major annoyance. Now if they could all run in the same direction instead of every which way, things would probably be a lot simpler. Luckily no one spared him a glance in their running. It would've probably caused more confusion if they noticed a teenager dashing from building to building.

He was through the missing segment of wall, past the sparse tree-filled clearing and straight back to the rusted gate in a matter of moments. A pall of dark smoke was rising out of where he believed the library's window would have been placed, mixing into the warm air and clogging the sky. A now free DiZ stood in front of the mansion's gateway as if he had merely been waiting for Naruto to return. His lips were turned upward as his eye remained locked on Naruto, but even with the mask and bandages covering his face the blond could tell there was visible tension in his smirk.

"You are beginning to become more troublesome than I originally thought, boy."

"Why the hell won't you just stay down? You're really ticking me off!" In a flash of fire and light, Ashes to Ashes sprung to life in his palm before he spun it once with the left half of his body farther ahead than his right with both knees bent somewhat. The keyblade was held in his right hand partly behind his body yet ready to attack, while his left was held out in front of him. He had to remain loose, just like he was taught to by bouncing on his heels. Unlike Aqua's 'wait and respond' method (which he learned over time was actually pretty good) he didn't want to copy her style and he'd rather be proactive than reactive. It was just his way and always had been.

"Well, well…I was unaware you had a keyblade…that just makes things…_very_ interesting. It's been years since I last saw one."

Naruto just sneered. "How did you escape?"

"Did you really think I wouldn't have an alternative to unlocking those bindings? A creative man would add other ways besides using a key."

"More like one who's paranoid!"

"And it worked out in the end, did it not?" DiZ laughed lightly before calmly raising his hand, palm upward. Dark tendrils of energy began coasting along his body and the area around him in a wide arc, sending a small shiver up Naruto's spine. That was some greatly compressed shadow power he was summoning and the ninja wasn't going to let it go on any farther. Channeling chakra to his legs, the ground exploded beneath his feet as his body shot forward at incredible speed. His attack was cut short as a wall of darkness rose from the ground and stopped the powerful swipe of his weapon, pushing Naruto back and causing him to hop back and readjust his grip.

This continued on as Naruto continued to attack and DiZ either blocking or somehow dodging. Though Naruto had grown experienced in fighting with a sword-like weapon during his time in the shadows, DiZ seemed to have a mastery over the shaded power and continued to force him into a stalemate. Seriously. It was ticking the boy off. Both weren't going full out though and that was exacerbating the situation. The past Naruto would have bum-rushed the older man with a gaggle of clones but a small niggling in the back of his mind canceled that action out. Despite already showing the man he could make copies of himself, DiZ didn't know how many and the blond didn't want to give away any more of his tricks.

Plus they were being discreetly watched.

From the top of the Old Mansion, hidden behind one of the weather-worn spires, stood two figures dressed completely in black. A long black leather coat with wide sleeves complete with face-hiding hood, black leather boots, pants, and gloves…the only oddity in their color scheme was the silver zipper, a chain that went from collar bone to collar bone, and two thin silver chains that helped to adjust the hood. Both were watching the fight in silence although one seemed visibly agitated compared to the other as the fight between darkness and light continued to rage on.

After a moment the one with the clearly feminine build pushing against the firmness of her clothing and giving it curves growled and groped at her hood, ripping the item off of her head. The action revealed chin-length blonde hair slicked back along her scalp except for two thick strands that spiked upward and back like antennae. Blue eyes stared angrily at the person next to her while the woman's pretty face was screwed up in a sneer of contempt.

"How long do we have to fucking stand here and watch those two attack each other? This is the stupidest assignment ever!" Her partner's hood glanced to the side, showing that they had heard what she said (not that it wasn't too hard not to) before the shadowed opening finally turned towards the blonde curiously. "And why the hell am I stuck working with you? You're a probationary member! You should be shining my boots or some other bitch task!"

The hooded figure merely shook its head slowly. "Larxene…" it said, revealing a gravelly male voice that sounded rather familiar. "You're lucky I'm only a 'probationary member' as you say, forced under a much harsher set of rules within the Organization. Because if I wasn't…I would have ripped you apart long ago." Gloved fingers moved upward and moved the black cowl to expose spiky blond hair, tanned skin, and dark whisker marks upon his cheeks. The most unnerving part was the man's eyes; the sclera was pure black and the iris was blood red, lacking any sort of pupil.

It was _Naruto_…but one that looked a few years older, perhaps near his twenties.

Larxene clicked her tongue at the threat before grinning savagely, lightly trailing a finger along his jaw before slim fingers roughly grabbed his cheeks and angled his face towards her own. A yellow knife with blue parts shaped like the emblem of their group flashed into her free hand within a spark of lightning and jabbed it at his now exposed neck. "Keep acting tough, fool. It'll be that much greater when I can finally destroy you myself."

The copy of Naruto merely grinned back, showing off a set of teeth sharper than normal. He wasn't afraid and that ticked her off. Well, it would have if the deranged woman could feel actually feel emotions and not go off of what anger felt like due to the memories of her former life. Behind the large swell of her chest where a heart would normally rest…there was absolutely nothing. A Nobody…a creature created when someone lost their heart and the shell of the body was left behind. The vast majority were mindless hierarchical drones but the rare few whose will was too great to simply fade away would leave behind an actual doppelganger with intelligence, shaped to look like the former person they were based from. These special Nobodies could easily pass for human, expressing emotion and acting normal…but it was all an act. They felt nothing at all and had to deceive themselves with the remaining vestiges of the sensations they could remember.

The powerful ones banded together over time, exerting their dominance over the ranks of normal Nobodies and creating a group to continue that control; Organization XIII. Thirteen members, all former people who lost their hearts and created a strong Nobody in the aftermath. Each carried a specialization in a specific attribute and worked day and night to realize the dream of their association:

To one day regain the heart that they had lost.

That wasn't to say everything was sunshine and rainbows. Each member still held the personality they sported in 'life', causing some to be antagonistic towards each other. Take Larxene for example. As the group's only female member and the fact her personality was that of a spoiled sadistic bitch with high intelligence and an ego (plus she could instantly make the switch to witty or childish in an instant), the blonde constantly found herself belittling her peers and mocking them whenever she could. It was a secret among the males that the woman seemed to get off on torture. She always had a gorgeous smirk on her lips when she was persecuting someone.

Things didn't change when member number XIV appeared some time ago, a younger female in her teens that went by the moniker 'Xion'. Larxene pretty much ignored her, not even seeing the new girl as a threat despite her power to summon a keyblade. Why there were fourteen affiliates in a group labeled as thirteen, no one seemed to question it. Plus this Xion had the same ability as their thirteenth member Roxas which was rather confusing to most but was welcomed nonetheless.

For whatever reason, when a special Nobody was 'born', they would appear outside of the gate of the Old Mansion in Twilight Town. Perhaps it was because such a world was close to their own home base but no one really knew. Once it began, an already existing member would travel to the mansion and name the latest addition before inducting them into their ranks. The process was pretty simple and naming was a breeze. The Nobody's former identity would be scrambled into an anagram and an 'X' would be added to the creation. Only the leader knew why the letter was added and truthfully, none of the others really cared. It was their own unique identity in the life they had to now lead.

Larxene released the Naruto look-alike with a sigh upon realizing he wasn't going to actually do anything, even with the sharp tip at his throat. "It's no fun when you don't squirm."

"Whatever. Just get back to reconnaissance. That's our _mission_, remember?" The female Nobody just twirled her finger in the air and rolled her eyes. "I'm not too sure who the tall guy is but he's able to control the darkness pretty easily. The shorter one though…" Coal black orbs narrowed before widening suddenly in shock as they continued staring at the young man carrying around a giant key. A wave of familiarity washed over him before his sharp vision caught sight of relatable whiskers. Coupled with the golden hair and decrepit orange clothing…

"The hell are you smiling at now, bastard?"

"Instead of flapping your jaw incessantly, take a closer look at that boy down there." His partner silently repeated what he said, mocking him before shading her eyes with her hand and zoning in on the battlers. He heard her actually release a slight gasp, causing yet another smirk to appear on the man's face.

"Oi…that brat down there has a keyblade…and he's got your ugly mug!"

"I'm actually surprised he survived…but that makes things so much easier. My desire for revenge hasn't changed, and the worlds were brought back from darkness due to the other bearer of the key-" The male's smile turned positively vicious at the idea. "-and thanks to him, I will be able to finally destroy Konoha and every single person that ever denied us our existence! They believed that their rejection wouldn't bring about any repercussions but little did those fools know…all the hatred simply waited for the time to strike!"

Larxene had no idea what he was talking about but she did understand the words 'revenge', 'destroy', and 'hatred'. The blond's anger seemed so strong, making the curvy woman believe that his former human self must have held a large amount of hate inside of his heart. Truthfully…it was sort of turning the fake human on. She had to rely on what her memories were telling her to have that _feeling_, of course, but her body's natural reaction was still happening.

"Hmmm…so what do we do now, Xonutra?" she asked with a low, sultry voice. It caused the newly labeled Nobody to raise an eyebrow in question but point down towards the fight where a lull had been created between the two anyways.

"We? You can head back to the base if you want. It's a good thing we originally set up that barrier prepared by Zexion since I'm going to pop over and greet my creator. It's likely going to get violent. Don't wait up." Without another word Xonutra leapt from his perch on top of the roof and sailed towards the ground, landing silently in between the two combatants. As he rose back to full height the Nobody threw out his arms towards them both as if motioning for them to hold on. Naruto actually backed up a few steps at the sudden intrusion of his doppelganger but DiZ merely placed his arms behind his back and waited. The masked man was wary, thinking it was just another one of the teenager's tricks. How wrong he was.

"Wuh-why the hell do you look like me?" the ninja yelled, pointing at the odd imposter in the black coat. While Naruto may have been on edge by it, he thought the outfit actually looked pretty cool. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts the blond tightened his stance and pointed his weapon forward. "You're not one of my clones! And why do you look older?"

"One second." Xonutra turned towards DiZ and made a shooing motion. "Buzz off, asshole. This is a private conversation." Now by this time, the elder man had just about enough of his plans being interrupted. When this _thing_ showed up that reminded him of his former apprentices' betrayal and the organization they later created, something inside of him snapped. The coat, the outfit…he was a member of the Nobody's group!

"ENOUGH!" Twin balls of purple-black fire sprang to life within his palms before he smashed them together and allowed the pressure to skyrocket. The blast exploded forward towards the blond creation, making Naruto jump away in fear seeing as the guy hadn't pulled anything like this on him before. Xonutra simply stood his ground and lifted an arm in front of his body, calm despite the attack rocketing towards him as his jacket's ends ripped backward from the wind.

The whole appendage glowed with a reddish aura before the limb blurred and connected with the darkness. It was instantly deflected off into the air where it suddenly exploded against an invisible wall. DiZ was awestruck that it had been so easily defeated, Naruto was lying on the ground with his arms and Ashes to Ashes covering his head, and Xonutra was shaking his arm to try and get rid of the pain.

"Well, shit! That one hurt a bit!"

"H…how did you stop that?"

The shinobi Nobody chuckled and finished rubbing his forearm before suddenly dashing at the man and throwing a bone-breaking punch towards his chest. While DiZ was able to turn somewhat to make the attack less damaging, he wasn't expecting a sudden large mass of the crimson power to flash to life around his fist and nearly rip off the disguised person's arm and tear open his torso. Now fearing for his life, DiZ decided to cut his losses and run. He was bleeding fast and medical attention was needed. He cursed the Nobody and his interruption, and cursed the younger blond for being so stubborn. This failure was going to set his preparations back and make him lose time!

He was quickly gone by way of a Corridor of Darkness.

The red around Xonutra's hand lost consistency as he allowed the man to leave, falling out of its large cube shape into dual small sphere's that began to lazily circle his head. Scoffing at the man's cowardice he turned around and slowly began walking towards his Somebody who had returned to his feet and was once again in an attack position. "Good thing my attribute over plasma is so malleable. That last attack of his coulda taken me out if I wasn't careful."

Naruto remained silent before grabbing the hilt of his keyblade with both hands. "Tell me who you are, now!"

The demand was met with a sigh as the two floating orbs grew to the size of watermelons. "I'm the one person who knows you better than anybody else, living or dead. I've always been with you…shaped by the emotions you never decided to express. Your despair over your position in life, your revulsion at how your _teammates_ and _teachers_ acted towards you, your pure and unfiltered **hatred**! Dark, negative feelings that you always tried to hide behind that disgustingly fake grin! I am you, Uzumaki Naruto! I! AM! YOUR! **DARKNESS!**"

The ground exploded underneath both their feet as the darkness he spoke of attempted to cover both of the blonds with its searching tendrils. Naruto had to cut through the blackish arms with his key just to not be overtaken while his 'darkness' stood there with a grin, uncaring of the strands that coursed over his body like gentle water. "You're my darkness? How is that possible? You're physical!" he yelled out with every swing.

"Perhaps if you ever took the time to willingly enter your mindscape, we would have met in the past! We were separated when you lost your heart but due to your strong will I became real! The question is; how did you survive? People fade away when their heart is lost to the darkness!"

"I just did! If you understand me so well then you should damn well know that nothing is going to erase me like I never existed! This Uzumaki never gives up and I still have things to do before I finally die!"

"Oh I know…I know that very well. But you're in luck; I'm not here to kill you at all. I am, however, going to take what is mine!" Before he could speak anymore, Naruto was upon him with a downward stroke. The metal of his sword hit against the plasma as it flattened out in front of Xonutra's surprised face like a wall. His human self had gotten much faster, even more so than when he was fighting DiZ. The keyblade was slowly but surely sawing its way through his plasma and he was beginning to struggle to keep it consistent. "H-how come you didn't show this power…against that man?"

"Because I needed him for something and you just chased him off!" With an extra push the jinchuriki cut through the shield and began to slash with speed-filled strokes. The taller, yellow-scalped man was able to stave them off but compared to the skill set he remembered Naruto once possessing, there was a vast difference in experience. Pushing the boy away he was able to hold out his palm and summon a larger amount of plasma that swirled and froze in its tracks before breaking away like glass. His right arm now possessed a large metal gauntlet that ran up to his elbow and was shaped like the Nobody emblem. The pointed end pushed past said elbow while the rounded edge was welded to the back of his hand. In the center of his palm was a small red ring and it easily stopped Ashes to Ashes from hitting his skin.

Naruto spun on his heel, spinning low and throwing a back slash towards Xonutra's knees. It was jumped over but the man still had to block again when Naruto continued to spin and rise up, throwing out another slash. The clang of metal meeting metal resounded through the air as the duo entered a weapons lock, sparks arcing from the contact as they ground against each other. Xonutra had the mass but his counterpart had the muscle thanks to simply surviving in such a harsh environment.

Naruto grinned suddenly as he stopped pushing against the gauntlet before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Xonutra twitched nearly imperceptibly before spinning around to meet the impending attack. "You think I would have fallen for-huh?" There was no one there, just a tree stump with a badly drawn face. The mistake was costly as something large, heavy, and rotating drilled into the plasma creator's spine. His nerve endings exploded into pain as a scream was ripped from his throat, the blond's body standing against the assault for a moment before his legs trembled and gave out. The new and excruciating pressure that tore at his back sent him spinning into the nearby trees like an overcharged top.

"RASENGAN!"

Larxene watched on, bemused, as her partner was sent flying away with some odd attack she had never seen before. The Nobody was losing to his ironically still-living counterpart. That was so pathetic! But if he had the power of the key in his hands, then this boy would be of some use to the Organization. Well…at least for those at Castle Oblivion. Nodding to herself the lithe female left her post and hopped down to ground level to appear next to her injured fellow group member.

"Wow, this is sad. The wittle baby got ass beat pretty easily."

"Stuff it, bitch." The woman merely laughed haughtily as he struggled to his feet, glaring at his counterpart before wiping away some stray blood leaking from his mouth. There was now a large hole torn into the back of his coat to reveal the raw, damaged skin underneath. Xonutra couldn't believe that such a simplistic feint had done so much to him and his flesh would likely be sporting that spiral cut for some time. "I wasn't expecting that…I'm…stunned that you actually learned some new tricks."

"I was trapped in the dark for a long time." Naruto released the still glowing ball in his hand, letting the chakra dissipate into the air and reabsorb back into his body. "I had to get stronger to stay alive. Did you really think I'd just pop behind you and attack like a rookie? Misdirection is one of my specialties. Gotta keep 'em guessing. Would someone really expect their opponent to \_not_ try and attack their blind spot when I can just make a new one?"

"In the old days you would have…"

"Alright, we get it! The kid's strong!" Larxene reached over and roughly pulled Xonutra closer to her, whispering in his ear. "He has a keyblade and wants answers from you. If we get him back to the castle…our little witch can start working on him. His curiosity will make him follow us and when we're finished you can go have your revenge or whatever." She held out a hand and focused, forming a Corridor of Darkness next to their bodies before turning towards Naruto and sending him a wink. "This was fun watching you smack this idiot around but we have to go."

The keyblade was resummoned into Naruto's hand as he pointed it towards the two of them. His jaw was set and the teeth were grinding together at how they thought they could just walk away so simply. And that caused Larxene to smirk. Wow this was too easy. The ninja was pretty predictable in certain aspects. "As if! You two aren't going anywhere!"

"You're more than welcome to follow us through here. Do be careful though; your heart might not be able to take the strain."

"You won't be so lucky next time. I underestimated you Naruto but not anymore."

With a cheery wave the woman dragged her colleague through the portal, leaving the demon container alone with his thoughts in the damaged clearing. Could he really go through another corridor without any consequences? The taint in his heart had nearly gone from the last time but could it handle a new influx of darkness? And what of DiZ? That man seemed to have his headquarters here…he could always return later to end their quarrel. His darkness in material form was more of a pressing matter to discover.

Doing his best to strengthen the light in his body, the shinobi keybearer took a deep breath and stuck a finger into the portal. Nothing jumped out to bite him but it felt...clammy and _wrong_. Slapping his cheeks to toughen his resolve he stuck a leg through which was quickly followed by the rest of his form. The gateway faded from view after a few seconds, as did the barrier surrounding the whole of the mansion. The townspeople who had been in the area, having known the original blast came from somewhere around that section of their town, were shocked and scared when before their very eyes they saw the normal landscape twist and change in an instant. Where flat, level grass and dirt once stood there was now craters and burn marks. It caused the myth of the Old Mansion being haunted to resurface and everyone did their best to get away in a hurry.

This area was now completely off-limits until a proper investigation could be mounted.

"Hey Fuu…didn't you say you saw that blond kid head this way?" The pale-haired girl nodded once, scanning the area with her visible eye as she hid behind a nearby tree to avoid being escorted away by any adults. The boy at her side was at least a head and a half taller than she was, dressed in baggy blue shorts, a short-sleeved orange shirt with a black design embroidered upon it, orange sneakers, a silver chain with a lightning bolt, and blue sweatbands on his wrists. His hair was short and brown and there were the faintest signs of fuzz on his chin. "Well I don't see him anywhere, ya know?"

"Pervert." she responded, as if that alone was good enough a reason for her to be searching for him. Fuu wasn't much of a fighter and so relied on her friends when things looked like they were going to get physical. Rai was one such buddy, and if he couldn't handle it then it would be brought to the attention of their leader Seifer.

"Are ya even sure he was trying to, uh, flirt with you? He could have been looking at something else, ya know?" The female looked around one more time and since she couldn't make out anything that looked remotely blond or human, she released a sigh and begrudgingly turned to leave.

"Home." Fuu muttered before walking away, getting Rai to grunt in reply. While she was one of his closest friends…the girl really needed to loosen up. Maybe actually try and get a boyfriend or something to help her along. He had known her for a long time and was pretty used to Fuu's one word speech pattern, able to understand a lot more hidden within that lone word than most others. Still, it _was_ starting to get late and the lad was getting hungry…

The mystery could wait until another time.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

With a heave and a stumble DiZ dropped into his chair and muttered curses under his breath as he did his best to adjust his bones against the cushion. Little did the others suspect, he had merely teleported back to the basement of his lair instead of some place far away from the fighting. They wouldn't think to try and look there, having more important issues with each other at the moment.

But seriously, DiZ was pissed beyond he had ever been before.

His computer was barely usable now. All the data he had collected was most likely corrupted and would take a good chunk of time to recover and defragment. That foolish blond _clone_ or whatever it was had caused the damage and that was what originally set the masked man off. Then he used his power to unlock his chains and kill the copy before blasting out a portion of the wall that he would have to repair as well. It had dug straight through the soil and out into the air, creating that explosion which drew the keyblade bearer back to the base.

Their fight had been rather even; both wanted something from the other and were therefore not using their full strength in case they accidentally killed their opponent. But, oh but, then those damnable Nobodies showed up and caused everything to escalate, nearly killing him in the process and ruining the rest of the day! He was able to watch most of the later events thanks to the cameras he had placed around the area, scoffing at the idiots that showed up to investigate and yet couldn't see past the Organization's illusion. Naruto went through yet another portal and the citizen's believed that the mansion was troubled by spirits. That was good; it would give him breathing room.

Clicking a few buttons, he was able to use a small portion of his hard drive to scan the vestiges of where the Corridor of Darkness had vanished. It appeared…to be linked to a world hidden away in the Realm Between. Once DiZ healed, he knew _exactly_ where he was going to go.

"None of you will escape…my plans are only currently on hold." He began to laugh in the dark room before wincing and looking at his still bleeding arm. Okay, first he would heal himself and then he would begin preparing. He only needed more time.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_A/N: Wow. This one actually took forever. Lots of different ideas and rewrites before I finally settled on this. It originally was supposed to come out when Dream Drop Distance did, but since I was also playing the game and struggling with the ideas…well, here we are._

_There is no good anagram of Naruto. Seriously. I tried a lot and yet Xonutra was the best I could sadly come up with. There was also Xunatro…bah. And it's seriously going to be a bitch when I try to come up with the anagram for the second provisionary member for Organization XIII. Let's just say it'll be long and probably just as bad._

_Xonutra is pronounced like Xion-oo(like you were saying up)-trah. Since wind was already taken and whirlpool was pretty much just a version of water, I went with one of the non-elemental attributes like Xemnas' nothingness, Xigbar's space, and Luxord's time. He can create a large amount of plasma and mold it into different shapes. I thought of giving him metal or magnetism or something…but nah. As for the gauntlet…well, knives were already taken and I didn't want his weapon to seem like a copy of Axel or Larxene. Idea's I once had for a weapon: a big shuriken, sorta like Mizuki's but that's too much like Axel's chakram. Two kunai-like knives but that would seem more like Larxene. I'm sticking with what I have for now as I have an idea for something it can do._

_On another note; Senran Kagura. I fell in love with the idea and seems like a perfect addition to Ninja Naruto in School. Busty schoolgirl ninjas? I think that would be a perfect crossover. Too bad it's a Japan-only video game...and there's only a few chapters of the Senran Kagura manga and it's prequel, Senran Kagura Spark. There's an anime on the way too...so my character portrayal may not be as good as it could be due to not having enough info yet._


End file.
